New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Tuesday his administration does not have the legal capacity to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he envisioned, and called on U.S. federal authorities to act.
• Also read: Trump assures Netanyahu he will not be arrested in the United States
• Also read: New York mayor considers arresting Netanyahu at UN General Assembly
The elected Democrat had claimed to be leading discussions on the legal possibility of executing the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against the Israeli leader if he came to the UN General Assembly in September.
“My administration has considered all available avenues” and “it is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this mandate,” Mr. Mamdani said in a brief video message posted on social media.
“The federal government, on the other hand, has it, and I call on it to join the ICC in carrying out this mandate,” he urged.
US President Donald Trump assured Monday that the Israeli Prime Minister, his ally in the war against Iran, would not be arrested in the United States, in reaction to the comments of Mr. Mamdani, of whom the Republican is a fervent critic.
The ICC, based in The Hague, issued arrest warrants in 2024 against Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip as part of the Israeli offensive carried out in retaliation for the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023.
“Anyone, with their eyes, their heart, their conscience, should recognize the devastation that he (Benjamin Netanyahu) has caused and understand that he must appear before a court,” added the mayor in his video, reiterating his comments published on Saturday in the New York Times and who had been condemned by the Israeli prime minister’s office.
“I share the opinion of the ICC that Benjamin Netanyahu should be arrested and tried for his crimes, just as I would for any other person indicted by the ICC,” he said.
