“He is a war criminal, his place is in The Hague” / At the UN General Assembly in New York, Mamdani “threatens” to arrest Netanyahu

Zohran Mamdani, the Mayor of New York City, has announced that he is reviewing legal options to enable city authorities to detain Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he travels to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly in September.

During a conversation with The New York Times, Mamdani clarified that the matter is part of an “active discussion” with the city’s legal department, but he did not reiterate his earlier promise to order Netanyahu’s arrest.

“I am convinced that Prime Minister Netanyahu should be in The Hague. He is a war criminal facing an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court. Whatever the law allows me to do in New York, we will do,” Mamdani stated.

In November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, based on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the conflict in Gaza. Israel has rejected both the charges and the court’s authority.

A possible initiative by New York authorities to enforce this arrest warrant would face significant legal challenges. The United States is not a signatory to the Rome Statute, which established the International Criminal Court, and therefore does not recognize its jurisdiction.