{"id":99317,"date":"2026-05-05T19:37:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T19:37:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/99317\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T19:37:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T19:37:21","slug":"exclusive-miss-israel-says-she-randomly-bumped-into-nyc-mayor-zohran-mamdanis-wife-in-cafe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/99317\/","title":{"rendered":"Exclusive | Miss Israel says she randomly bumped into NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s wife in cafe –"},"content":{"rendered":"

Miss Israel says she randomly bumped into New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u2019s wife in a Brooklyn cafe over the weekend \u2014 and that the first lady \u201cbrushed me off\u2019\u2019<\/a> when she learned she was Israeli.<\/a><\/p>\n

Tel Aviv beauty queen Melanie Shiraz, 27, claimed to The California Post she was in town for an event at the Israeli Consulate and ran into Big Apple first lady Rama Duwaji, 28, sitting at a coffee shop in hipster Williamsburg on Sunday.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe sat right next to me. What are the odds?\u201d Shiraz said.<\/p>\n

Miss Israel Melanie Shiraz says she randomly bumped into New York City first lady Rama Duwaji in a Brooklyn cafe Sunday. Courtesy Melanie Shiraz<\/p>\n

Shiraz said the pair\u2019s brief encounter started off warm, with her starting to take a selfie video with Duwaji.<\/p>\n

The 3-second footage Shiraz shared with The Post did not have sound, but it begins by showing her face, then pans to Duwaji.<\/p>\n

The mayor\u2019s controversial wife \u2014 who has taken heat for reportedly once liking posts celebrating the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist massacre in Israel \u2014 smiles into the camera, then quickly appears to try to get out of the frame as she says something to Shiraz.<\/p>\n

The Israeli beauty queen is ardently pro-Israel. Instagram\/@melanieshiraz<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not clear whether Shiraz said something to her off-camera to have her react that way, nor what the pageant winner then said to her, as the camera shows.<\/p>\n

But Shiraz said that as soon as she unveiled who she was, Duwaji\u2019s \u201ctone changed\u201d and she \u201ccouldn\u2019t allow herself to engage with me.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had told her I\u2019m Miss Israel, and then she didn\u2019t want to engage with me anymore. Shocker,\u2019\u2019 Shiraz said.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was polite but clearly changed her tone.<\/p>\n

Shiraz was in the Big Apple for an event at the Israeli Consulate.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight before I took that [footage], I asked her if we could take a photo and introduced myself. As soon as I did, she said, \u2018Sorry\u2019 and asked if it was a video and said she didn\u2019t want to anymore,\u2019\u2019 Shiraz said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told her what I think about the stuff she has said online, and that I believe that it\u2019s important to engage in dialogue in which you don\u2019t dehumanize the other side.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd she politely brushed me off and then refused to engage anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shiraz said her brief encounter with Duwaji started off warm. Courtesy Melanie Shiraz<\/p>\n

Shiraz said she could not understand why Duwaji would address her past comments critical of Israel publicly but would not talk to her in person.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe has publicly addressed comments she made that were sympathetic to October 7 and dehumanizing of Israelis, yet she couldn\u2019t allow herself to engage with me,\u2019\u2019 the pageant strutter said.<\/p>\n

Duwaji did not respond to a California Post request for comment. Mamdani\u2019s office declined to comment.<\/p>\n

Duwaji\u2019s husband, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, has said his wife is a \u201cprivate person who has held no formal position on my campaign or in my City Hall.\u201d James Keivom<\/p>\n

Duwaji was forced into a humiliating apology<\/a> last month after a flurry of her past inflammatory social media posts came to light, including one that said Tel Aviv \u201cshouldn\u2019t exist in the first place.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also posted \u00a0a photo of Palestinian terrorist Leila Khaled to her Tumblr account in 2017 with a subtitle: \u201cIf it does good for my cause, I\u2019ll be happy to accept death.\u201d<\/p>\n

The city\u2019s first lady, addressing the controversy of her reported liking of the Oct. 7 post, apologized last month, saying she has \u201cread and seen a lot of what others have had to say in response, and I understand the hurt I caused, and am truly sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shiraz said she can\u2019t understand why Duwaji would not engage with her when the mayor\u2019s wife has publicly made some of her thoughts about Israel clear on social media. Instagram\/@melanieshiraz<\/p>\n

For her part, Shiraz is ardently pro-Israel and tours the US speaking to college students and others about her nation after garnering a huge following for winning Miss Israel.<\/p>\n

At a Stanford event in California last month, she tussled with \u201chateful\u201d agitators <\/a>when a protester snagged one of her signs. The police got involved, though it is still unclear if any charges will be filed.<\/p>\n

Stanford said it was \u201ccommitted to ensuring that it is a space where all individuals can safely and openly express their views.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mamdani has said his wife is a \u201cprivate person who has held no formal position on my campaign or in my City Hall.\u201d<\/p>\n

She became the youngest first lady of New York City when her husband was inaugurated earlier this year.<\/p>\n

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