Mamdani dodges on ‘political theater’ of empty Netanyahu arrest threat, calls for US action and NYC protests
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani declined Wednesday to say when he learned the city had no authority to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after repeatedly campaigning on a...
By Fox News · Fox News
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani declined Wednesday to say when he learned the city had no authority to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after repeatedly campaigning on a promise to detain the Israeli leader if he came to New York. Pressed over whether the now-abandoned arrest threat amounted to "political theater," Mamdani said his administration had reviewed the applicable laws and concluded that only the federal government could execute the International Criminal Court warrant. "It’s clear that the city does not have the authority to execute this warrant," Mamdani admitted at a New York City Hall news conference Wednesday, urging the federal government to act on the ICC warrant even though the U.S. is not a member of the ICC and does not recognize the court’s jurisdiction in the U.S. or over Israel, which is also not a member. With the Trump administration already fully rejecting his call to arrest Netanyahu for being a "war criminal," Mamdani called for New Yorkers to take to protest "if anyone feels a level of frustration or opposition." MAMDANI GOES BACK ON CAMPAIGN PROMISE, SAYS NYC CAN'T ARREST NETANYAHU "I believe that this is an arrest warrant that should be executed, and also that I would follow the laws that we had, and I would be respectful of those laws," he added. "And that is why I asked my administration to review of all applicable laws. And I believe, however, in that same finding, that the United States government does have the ability to both joining the International Criminal Court and executing that work, and that is something that I want to see happen." Short of that, Mamdani suggested that people protest when the Israeli leader visits for the United Nations General Assembly, potentially in September. "This is a city where, if anyone feels a level of frustration or opposition, protest is something that we will always respect," Mamdani told reporters. "I leave it to New Yorkers themselves to make that decision." The mayor wa…