{"id":364432,"date":"2025-11-08T11:45:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-08T11:45:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/364432\/"},"modified":"2025-11-08T11:45:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-08T11:45:17","slug":"in-israel-mamdanis-win-in-new-york-stirs-alarm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/364432\/","title":{"rendered":"In Israel, Mamdani\u2019s win in New York stirs alarm"},"content":{"rendered":"

JERUSALEM (AP) \u2014 The election of Zohran Mamdani as New York City\u2019s next mayor<\/a> has sent a chill across Israel as people come to terms with the victory of a politician propelled by an outspoken pro-Palestinian message that is rare in U.S. politics.<\/p>\n

Israelis across the political spectrum fear that Mamdani\u2019s election — in the city with the world\u2019s second-largest Jewish population \u2014 could foreshadow icier relations with the U.S., Israel\u2019s most important ally. Support for Mamdani from almost one-third of Jewish voters only added to the pain<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cVery bad,\u201d said Hana Jaeger, a Jerusalem resident, assessing the news the day after the election. \u201cFor the Jews, for Israel, for everyone, it\u2019s very bad. What else can you say?\u201d <\/p>\n

Mamdani\u2019s campaign was animated by an array of local economic issues, such as the lack of affordable child care and housing. But in Israel, his pro-Palestinian platform is all that matters, and it was the strongest illustration yet of a change in attitudes<\/a> showing a softening of support for Israel among the American public \u2014 particularly younger, Democratic voters. This change appears to have been expedited by anger over the brutal war in Gaza launched in response to Hamas\u2019 October 2023 attack on Israel.<\/p>\n

Israeli government officials expressed their outrage sharply, labeling Mamdani, who is Muslim, as an Israel-hating antisemite. Analysts said their heavy-handed reactions indicated just how concerned they are about the shifting political winds.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven where there is a huge concentration of Jewish power, Jewish money, Jewish cultural and political influence \u2014 even in this place, an American can be elected with a clear anti-Israeli label on his lapel,\u201d wrote Shmuel Rosner, an analyst at the Jewish People Policy Institute.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat he did proves that standing up against Israel … can be politically profitable, or at least not harmful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Israelis react to the news<\/p>\n

Israel has traditionally had a special connection with New York City. It is a popular destination for Israeli tourists and politicians, filled with kosher restaurants and home to an Israeli consulate that focuses heavily on relations with the Jewish community. Hebrew can often be heard on the streets and subways.<\/p>\n

But throughout his campaign, the 34-year-old Mamdani, a far-left state lawmaker, alarmed Israelis by openly disavowing the pro-Israel stance traditionally adopted by New York\u2019s mayoral hopefuls.<\/p>\n

While he says he supports Israel\u2019s right to exist, he describes any state or social hierarchy that favors Jews over others as incompatible with his belief in universal human rights. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s a statement many Israelis view as an affront to the core premise of the country, which was founded as a refuge and homeland for Jews in the aftermath of the Holocaust. This vision has tested Israel\u2019s democratic ideals; Palestinian citizens of Israel frequently suffer discrimination, and millions of Palestinians live under Israeli occupation in the West Bank.<\/p>\n

Mamdani also has called the war in Gaza a genocide, a charge Israel\u2019s government denies. He\u2019s vowed to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if the premier steps foot in the city and signaled he may cut ties with Israeli industry and academia over the devastating war in Gaza. <\/p>\n

Such views have drawn accusations of antisemitism from mainstream Jewish groups and supporters of Israel. Still, Mamdani has repeatedly committed to fighting antisemitism and developed strong alliances with center-left Jewish leaders. The AP Voter Poll found that he won roughly 30% of the Jewish vote.<\/p>\n

At his celebration party Tuesday night, Mamdani said, \u201cwe will build a City Hall that stands steadfast alongside Jewish New Yorkers and does not waver in the fight against the scourge of antisemitism.\u201d<\/p>\n

Israelis who tuned in Wednesday morning to the country\u2019s popular Army Radio station during their morning commutes heard condemnations \u2014 and fear \u2014 related to Mamdani\u2019s victory. Israel\u2019s ambassador to the U.N., Danny Danon, speculated that the New York \u201cJewish community\u2019s sense of security\u201d might be harmed by Mamdani as mayor, as he has control over the city\u2019s police force.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s minister of diaspora affairs, Amichai Chikli, a member of Netanyahu\u2019s nationalist Likud party, posted a stream of anti-Mamdani graphics on social media, including a retweeted photo of the Twin Towers being engulfed in flames after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, with the caption \u201cNew York already forgot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chikli also encouraged Jews in New York to relocate to Israel. \u201cThe city that was once a symbol of global freedom has handed over its keys to a Hamas supporter,\u201d he said in a social media post.<\/p>\n

The extreme rhetoric reflected a deep-seated fear in Israel that American politics are headed in a new direction.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor a long, long time, American domestic politics were dominated by pro-Israel politicians, pro-Israel views. In large part, they still are,\u201d said Mairav Zonszein, a senior analyst with the International Crisis Group. \u201cMamdani\u2019s win represents that American Jews, specifically the younger generation, are changing and there\u2019s no longer this monopoly of pro-Israel politics in domestic U.S. politics.\u201d<\/p>\n

Netanyahu mostly quiet on Mamdani, emphasizes relationship with Trump<\/p>\n

The Trump administration, which has been hostile to Mamdani, has largely supported Israel\u2019s actions in Gaza. It is now working closely with Israel to determine the next phases of the reconstruction of Gaza and the ceasefire with Hamas. <\/p>\n

Netanyahu did not immediately comment on the Mamdani win. But his office tried Wednesday to remind Israelis that the country\u2019s relationship with the U.S. was still strong.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a bond that is stronger than ever between Israel and the United States right now,\u201d government spokeswoman Shosh Bedrosian said at her daily briefing.<\/p>\n

She said the election results did not \u201cundermine the incredible, enormous relationship the prime minister has with President Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n

Palestinians celebrate Mamdani\u2019s win<\/p>\n

In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, the sentiment among Palestinians was far from gloomy. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe election of Mr. Mamdani is truly inspiring,\u201d said Palestinian politician Mustafa Barghouti. \u201cIt reflects a great uprising among the younger generation of the United States, including the Jewish young generation, against political and social injustice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt also shows that the Palestinian issue has become an internal election issue all over the world, including in the United States of America.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"JERUSALEM (AP) \u2014 The election of Zohran Mamdani as New York City\u2019s next mayor has sent a chill…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":364433,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[97,91952,372,39655,69,90,57,4527,176519,6604,556,99,3462,373,3463,176520,405,403,50,9598,80,367,176521,67,132,68,107,5301],"class_list":{"0":"post-364432","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"category-us","9":"tag-2024-2025-mideast-wars","10":"tag-amichai-chikli","11":"tag-benjamin-netanyahu","12":"tag-danny-danon","13":"tag-donald-trump","14":"tag-elections","15":"tag-general-news","16":"tag-hamas","17":"tag-hana-jaeger","18":"tag-international-news","19":"tag-islam","20":"tag-israel","21":"tag-israel-government","22":"tag-israel-hamas-war","23":"tag-mideast-wars","24":"tag-mustafa-barghouti","25":"tag-new-york","26":"tag-new-york-city","27":"tag-news","28":"tag-palestinian-territories-government","29":"tag-politics","30":"tag-religion-and-politics","31":"tag-shmuel-rosner","32":"tag-united-states","33":"tag-unitedstates","34":"tag-us","35":"tag-world-news","36":"tag-zohran-mamdani"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115513916443753493","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/364432","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=364432"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/364432\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/364433"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=364432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=364432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=364432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}