New York mayor considers possibility of Netanyahu's arrest if he visits city next September

The New York Times revealed that New York City Mayor Zahran Mamdani is seriously studying with the city's legal affairs department the possibility of issuing an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, if he sets foot in the city to participate in the meetings of the United Nations General Assembly scheduled for next September.

Mamdani, an Indian-American politician, had pledged during his 2025 election campaign to arrest Israel's prime minister if he won the mayor's post, but has recently appeared more cautious and hesitant about enforcement mechanisms.

"I think Netanyahu's natural place is The Hague, he's accused of war crimes, and I share that view," Mamdani said on the "The Interview" podcast, adding, "We're going to do what the law allows in New York, but we're not going to invent new laws to that end." 

The mayor of New York acknowledged that there are "active talks" to discuss jurisdiction, expressing utter uncertainty that he has the executive legal authority to directly instruct the NYPD to arrest an international official with diplomatic protection over U.S. soil.

Netanyahu attacks Mamadani

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on the other hand, downplayed the threats, directly accusing the mayor of New York of supporting Hamas.

In a sharp response, Netanyahu said: "Who is supporting him? Hamas, which declares its desire to exterminate every Jew on earth, and which has committed the worst commemoration since the Holocaust," he said, adding that "it has to reconsider who condemns and who praises, it denounces democratic Israel. Anti-Israel is anti-American, and in secret he hates America."

Israel's Consul General in New York, Ofir Akunis, responded  on Saturday, asserting that Mayor Mamadani "has no authority" to issue such an order, adding, "Instead of getting involved in international cases outside his jurisdiction, he should have devoted his efforts and energies to running New York City and solving its problems only."

International Arrest Warrants and Legal Obstacle in the U.S.

The New York mayor's moves are based on the two arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court in November 2024 against Netanyahu and his former defense minister Yoav Gallant on charges related to war crimes and crimes against humanity, which were recently strengthened by the Istanbul Supreme Criminal Court in July 2026 issuing an international arrest warrant against him, which obliges 125 member states of the Rome Statute to arrest him immediately upon entering their territory.

 Despite these international prosecutions, the implementation of Maddani's electoral promise in New York City faces near-impossible legal and political obstacles, given that the United States is not a signatory to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and it imposes strict federal protection on official diplomatic delegations participating in the work of the United Nations, nullifying any domestic action that the city authorities may take unilaterally.