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<\/a><\/p>\nPublished On 18 Jul 202618 Jul 2026<\/p>\n
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani<\/a> has said that he is consulting with city authorities over the possibility of arresting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits the city for the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September.<\/p>\n In an interview with The New York Times (NYT) released on Saturday, Mamdani reiterated his view that Netanyahu, who is the subject of an ICC arrest warrant<\/a> for possible crimes against humanity in Gaza, must be brought to justice for the Israeli military\u2019s actions in Gaza.<\/p>\n Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list<\/p>\n \u201cI believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in the Hague,\u201d Mamdani told The Interview, a show produced by the NYT.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court,\u201d he added. \u201cAnd what you will find is that is an opinion that is held by many, purely because of what his actions have wrought over these last many years.\u201d<\/p>\n Mamdani, a democratic socialist who has emerged as an outspoken supporter of the Palestinian cause<\/a>, pledged to arrest Netanyahu if he came to New York City during his mayoral campaign. Some questioned the feasibility of that promise.<\/p>\n The mayor said that he was in \u201cactive conversation\u201d with the city\u2019s law department about whether he has the authority to have Netanyahu arrested, should he travel to New York.<\/p>\n \u201cWhatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that\u2019s what we will do, but we won\u2019t be writing our own laws to that end,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Asked about Mamdani\u2019s call to have him arrested, Netanyahu told radio personality Sid Rosenberg that he thinks Mamdani secretly \u201chates America\u201d.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, also insisted that Netanyahu will be at the UNGA meeting in New York this September, despite the threats of arrest.<\/p>\n During his campaign for mayor, Mamdani was the target of frequent Islamophobic vitriol<\/a> and insults. Rosenberg referred to the New York mayor hopeful as a \u201ccockroach\u201d, before later apologising.<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s election to mayor and his continued calls for accountability regarding Netanyahu point to a dramatic swing among Democratic voters away from Israel.<\/p>\n A poll in May found that nearly three-quarters of Democratic voters oppose<\/a> US aid to Israel, up from 45 percent three years ago.<\/p>\n Nearly half of those surveyed said that their party was too supportive of Israel, whose war on Gaza has been termed a genocide<\/a> by a growing number of human rights organisations, international officials, and scholars.<\/p>\n While that shift has yet to translate into concrete policy change at the top of the party, which includes stalwart supporters of Israel, many Democratic politicians have slowly begun to adjust their positions.<\/p>\n