Mamdani says New York City can't arrest Netanyahu for war crimes but federal government should

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Tuesday that his administration did not have the legal authority to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he had planned, and called on US federal authorities to do so. The Democratic mayor had said earlier this month that he was exploring the legal possibility of executing the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against the Israeli leader if he were to attend the UN General Assembly in September. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Tuesday that his administration did not have the legal authority to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he had planned, and called on US federal authorities to do so.

The Democratic mayor had said earlier this month that he was exploring the legal possibility of executing the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against the Israeli leader if he were to attend the UN General Assembly in September. By: FRANCE 24 New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani delivers remarks during a ceremony marking the 250th anniversary of US independence at City Hall in New York on July 3, 2026. © Anna Connors, Pool, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said late Tuesday that the city would not be able to execute an arrest warrant issued by the world’s top war-crimes court for Israel ’s Benjamin Netanyahu, but urged the federal government to do so. In the video Mamdani described the Israeli prime minister as a “war criminal” and said he is not welcome in New York City.

“It is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant, he said in a video posted on X. “The federal government however does and I call on them to join the ICC and execute this warrant, he added, referring to the International Criminal Court. yahu if he comes to New York City for the UN General Assembly in September. US President Donald Trump on Monday told Netanyahu in a social media post that he “will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America".

The post did not directly mention Mamdani. Mamdani had said throughout his mayoral election campaign last year that he would seek to order the city’s police to arrest Netanyahu under the criminal court's warrant over Netanyahu’s role in the war in Gaza. termined the city can't execute the arrest warrant.

“I want to be equally clear, Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other war criminal at large, he said. Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the UN, responded by telling the mayor “enough.