New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said his office is still looking into arresting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits the city for the United Nations General Assembly in September.
Background
The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders in 2024, accusing them of war crimes during and after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel. The US has not ratified the Rome Statute, which obliges countries to arrest people who have ICC warrants against them.
Mamdani, a fierce critic of the Israeli government, has repeatedly criticized Israel’s war in Gaza as a “genocide.” Israel denies those claims. US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz called the mayor’s comments “pure political theater” and noted the US is not a member of the ICC.
Netanyahu dismissed concerns about Mamdani’s calls for his arrest, and Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said Netanyahu “will come to New York, address the United Nations General Assembly with pride, and stand before the world to state Israel’s truth and its unwavering right to defend its citizens.”
Original reporting: KRDO (Colorado Springs metro) — read the source article.
