NYC Mayor Mamdani Weighs Arresting Netanyahu Over ICC Warrant During September UN Visit
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in an interview released Saturday on The New York Times podcast "The Interview" that his administration is actively reviewing whether it has legal authority to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he travels to the city in September for the UN General Assembly. The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu in 2024 over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity tied to Israel's military campaign in Gaza, including allegations of using starvation as a method of warfare. Mamdani first pledged during his mayoral campaign to have Netanyahu arrested if he came to New York, and told the Times his office's legal department is now weighing "what the prospects are" under city and federal law.
US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz responded on social media that the plan will not happen, citing four obstacles: the United States is not party to the Rome Statute underlying the ICC, the UN Headquarters Agreement grants diplomatic protections to visiting heads of government, head-of-state immunity applies, and federal authority supersedes a mayor's local powers. Netanyahu, in a radio interview with WABC host Sid Rosenberg, accused Mamdani of supporting Hamas and said the mayor "hates America." Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams also criticized the move, saying it could carry consequences for Americans serving overseas.
Netanyahu is expected to attend the UN General Assembly session in New York this September as he has in past years, according to Israel's UN ambassador Danny Danon. A December poll from Honan Strategy Group found 40% of New York City voters believed Mamdani had a moral obligation to pursue an arrest under international human rights standards, but seven in 10 of the poll's Jewish respondents said doing so would damage the city's global standing.
Arguments for:
Supporters point to the ICC's 2024 warrant itself, arguing that a sitting mayor honoring an international arrest warrant sends a message that alleged war crimes carry consequences regardless of a leader's rank.
Backers say Mamdani is simply following through on a promise he made openly and repeatedly on the campaign trail, including to Jewish audiences, rather than abandoning it now that he holds office.
Arguments against:
Opponents note the US never ratified the Rome Statute that underlies the ICC's authority, and that head-of-state immunity and the UN Headquarters Agreement make any local arrest attempt legally unenforceable.
Critics, including former Mayor Eric Adams, warn the move could invite retaliation against Americans abroad and strain relations with a close ally over an action New York City almost certainly cannot carry out.
Even polling among sympathetic constituencies found most Jewish New Yorkers feared the attempt would hurt the city's standing more than it would accomplish, suggesting limited practical upside.
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