Mamdani drops Netanyahu arrest pledge

Washington: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said that the city cannot arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under an International Criminal Court warrant, stepping back from a campaign pledge after a legal review concluded that his administration lacked the authority to act.

Mamdani, however, called Netanyahu a “war criminal” and urged the Trump administration to arrest him during his expected visit to New York for the United Nations General Assembly in September.

“My administration has reviewed every avenue available under applicable law to determine whether New York City could execute the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant if Benjamin Netanyahu came here,” Mamdani said in a video posted on X.

“It is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant,” he said.

Mamdani said the federal government had such authority and called on Washington to join the ICC and execute its warrant. The United States is not a member of the court.

The mayor’s announcement came a day after President Donald Trump declared that Netanyahu would not be taken into custody during his US visit.

“Benjamin Netanyahu will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America,” Trump said in a Truth Social post Monday.

During his mayoral campaign, Mamdani repeatedly said he would order Netanyahu’s arrest when the Israeli leader visited New York. He recently told The New York Times Magazine that his administration was in an “active conversation” with the city’s Law Department about enforcing the warrant.

Mamdani maintained his criticism of Netanyahu despite the legal conclusion.

“Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal. The architect of a horrific genocide against the Palestinian people,” he said.

“As I’ve said, I agree with the ICC that Benjamin Netanyahu should be arrested and tried for his crimes, as I do for anyone else charged by the ICC,” Mamdani added.

He also said the Israeli leader remained unwelcome in the city.

“I want to be equally clear: Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other war criminal at large,” Mamdani said.

Netanyahu’s office rejected the accusations and criticised Mamdani. “The ICC is a kangaroo court that has no jurisdiction over Americans or Israelis,” it said in a statement posted on X.

IANS