New York, MINA – New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Thursday hit back at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s criticisms in his UN General Assembly address, pointing to the international warrant seeking the visiting prime minister’s arrest, Anadolu Agency reports.
Netanyahu’s “lies” in his UN address cannot erase the warrant for genocidal war crimes issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC), said the mayor. “As he has done time and again, Prime Minister Netanyahu used his speech to repeat baseless lies meant to sanitize his genocide of Palestinians,” Mamdani said in a statement, local media reported.
“Yet no lie can change the fact that he remains the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant alleging war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
In November 2024, the ICC, based in The Hague, issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip.
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This July, Mamdani urged US federal authorities to enforce the ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu, acknowledging that New York City authorities lack the legal power to carry it out.
Zohran Mamdani, a progressive Democrat and the first Muslim mayor of New York City, has been a vocal critic of Israel’s actions in Gaza and a supporter of Palestinian rights. His statement following Netanyahu’s UN address reflects his consistent position on holding Israeli officials accountable for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Netanyahu’s address to the UN General Assembly took place before a largely empty hall after delegations from several countries walked out in protest of Israel’s genocidal war against the Gaza Strip.
The protests outside the UN headquarters, including by Jewish groups opposed to Zionism and the Israeli government’s policies, underscored the deep divisions within the Jewish community and the broader international community over Israel’s conduct.
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The ICC arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant obligate all 124 states parties to the Rome Statute to arrest and surrender the suspects if they enter their territory.
The US, which is not a party to the Rome Statute, has rejected the ICC’s jurisdiction over Israel and has imposed sanctions on the court.
Mamdani’s call for federal authorities to enforce the warrant highlights the legal and political complexities surrounding the case and the growing pressure on the US to hold Israeli officials accountable. The situation remains tense, with the war in Gaza and the broader Middle East conflict continuing to dominate the international agenda.[]
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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