New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has renewed controversy over his campaign pledge to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits the city..reports Asian Lite News Desk
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has acknowledged that his administration does not have the legal authority to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant, despite reviving a campaign pledge that he would seek to do so if the Israeli leader visited the city.
The issue resurfaced after Mamdani repeated his election campaign promise during a recent interview with The New York Times, prompting renewed debate over the city’s legal powers and the United States’ position on the ICC.
In a video statement, Mamdani said his administration had examined whether New York City could enforce the ICC warrant issued against Netanyahu on war crimes charges.
“My administration has reviewed every avenue available under applicable law to determine if New York City could execute the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant if Benjamin Netanyahu came here,” he said.
He added: “It is clear we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant.”
Mamdani nevertheless urged the federal government to act, saying: “The federal government, however, does.”
“I call on them to join the ICC and execute this warrant,” he added.
The United States, however, is not a member of the ICC and has consistently rejected the court’s jurisdiction over US citizens and close allies, including Israel.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon dismissed Mamdani’s comments, describing him as a “clown” and calling his “baseless remarks about harassing the prime minister — it’s a joke”.
Danon said the mayor should instead focus on local issues, including homelessness, waste management and public safety.
“He should take care of the security of the people in New York, especially the Jewish community, which is seeing the rise of antisemitism,” Danon said in remarks to Fox News.
US President Donald Trump has also rejected suggestions that Netanyahu could face arrest in the United States. His administration has taken a confrontational stance towards the ICC, imposing sanctions on judges and officials involved in investigations concerning the US and Israel.
Under the sanctions, some ICC officials have been barred from entering the United States, while ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan has had his US-based assets frozen.
The administration has repeatedly criticised the court. Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in a Wall Street Journal opinion article last week that “US soldiers, police officers, Border Patrol agents and elected leaders could be dragged before” international judges.
He later wrote on X: “All of them will be at the mercy of foreign judges, thousands of miles away — facing the constant risk of prosecution and even imprisonment for the so-called ‘crime’ of defending their own country.”
Earlier this month, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche also criticised the court in a letter to ICC President Judge Tomoko Akane, saying its “record of selective enforcement and credible allegations of internal misconduct raise serious doubts about the ICC’s impartiality, credibility, and legitimacy”.
The ICC has also issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over alleged war crimes.
Meanwhile, a former New York police officer who was previously assigned to Netanyahu’s security detail questioned the practicality of any attempt by city police to detain the Israeli leader. He said Netanyahu travels with a heavily armed security team and would also receive protection from the US Secret Service during official visits, making any such operation highly unlikely.
