Mamdani: Netanyahu should be arrested if he visits NYC; I'm discussing it but won't rewrite laws to do so

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in an interview published Saturday that he believes Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should be arrested for war crimes if he visits the city in September for the United Nations General Assembly, but indicated that he would not try to amend laws to do so.

'I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague. He's a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court. And 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.'

Mamdani said he was in active conversation with our legal department about what the law allows him to do in New York City.

Danny Danon, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, responded: 'Mamdani is failing to govern New York. Instead of focusing on his responsibilities as mayor and confronting the rising wave of antisemitism in his city, he has chosen to incite hostility and generate headlines by attacking the State of Israel.' Danon added: 'And if anyone should be arrested, it is NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani.'

Legal experts have also said Mamdani's threat to arrest Netanyahu is baseless.