New York (AFP) – New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani is in talks over whether to try to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during an upcoming UN summit, he said in an interview published Saturday – prompting a sharp rebuke from Netanyahu’s camp.
“I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” Mamdani told The New York Times. “He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court.”
The leftist Mamdani, who has called Israel an “apartheid regime,” added: “That is an opinion that is held by many, purely because of what his actions have wrought over these last many years.”
Mamdani admitted he was not sure if he has the power to order the New York Police Department to detain a foreign leader but is discussing the matter with the city’s legal team.
“Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that’s what we will do,” he said.
The UN General Assembly, a major gathering of world leaders, takes place in September at UN headquarters in New York.
Mamdani in the past has vowed to send the NYPD to enforce arrest warrants against leaders wanted by the International Criminal Court, including Netanyahu or Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Hague-based ICC said in 2024 that it had reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu was responsible for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity related to Israel’s offensive in Gaza following the unprecedented […] attack by Hamas.
Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, quickly called out Mamdani.
“Instead of focusing on his responsibilities as mayor and confronting the rising wave of antisemitism in his city, he has chosen to incite hostility and generate headlines by attacking the State of Israel,” Danon wrote on X.
“It will not change a thing. Israeli Prime Minister @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,” he said.
“And if anyone should be arrested, it is @NYCMayor Zohran Mamdani.”
Netanyahu has accused Mamdani of supporting Hamas, saying on a recent New York radio show: “I think, secretly, he hates America.”
I can see where this might not be a legal possibility. While it may be legal for NYPD to arrest a foreign national based on an ICC warrant, it would arguably be the United States - not New York City - that is authorized to hand such a prisoner over to ICC, because that is an international matter.
Or, since the warrant is from outside the US, the feds might even need to be involved in the arrest.
This is true. The US is not a member of the ICC and doesn’t recognize its authority. If Mamdani tried to arrest Netanyahu, he may be brought up on federal charges.
is actively trying to dismantle it now and has the Hague Invasion act
https://www.hrw.org/news/2002/08/03/us-hague-invasion-act-becomes-law
What’s the charge?
He would be charged for violating the American Service-Members’ Protection Act, which grants US servicemen and allies with diplomatic immunity against ICC charges. Under that law it is illegal for any American to assist the International Court against any fellow Americans or their allies. There’s also a clause that states, that if a US citizen or ally is brought to the Hague for trial…the US military will invade the Netherlands in order to extricate those individuals
That’s right. The US has literally passed a law prohibiting the prosecution of US military members and their allies for war crimes. How fucked up is that?
Insane since the Netherlands are part of NATO, and therefore an ally.
So they have a law to forbid their allies from being charged of war crimes and also to allow the invasion of a country
It’s insane to me what other countries will tolerate out of the U.S. like, you’d expect most states around the world would recognize it as the biggest threat to the world on earth. China? Russia? Nothing compared to the u.s. and it’s not a new issue either.
Enjoying a succulent dinner.
This man knows his judo
He should invite interpol to the conference and let them do it
There was a bunch of discussion about why the government didn’t do something similar when ?Gaddafi? came to UN meetings, and it was that there’s an agreement of some kind (treaty? law? UN charter?) that means people coming to New York for UN meetings cannot be arrested. Of course, this administration and it’s supporters have shown absolutely no regard for any of those to date - but you can bet they’ll be screeching from the rooftops if Mamdani tries to arrest Netanyahu.
Yes, I’m pretty sure that the deal with the Un being in NYC means exactly that.
They just have to put him on a boat in international water. That’s, what, 30 minutes from NYC?
Oh yeah that would work. Sail out, set him in a dinghy, sail away while ICC picks him up.
NYPD has much better boats then a dinghy, but yes
No need to waste a better boat.
Never stops Trump from doing what he wants. You can’t play by the rules when nobody else is.
It is not legal. The US doesn’t recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC and is not party to the Rome Statute. You can’t arrest someone with a warrant in a court that has no jurisdiction.
…soooo… …what about what the US did to the Venezuelan President…?
I mean in my opinion the US is an illegitimate rogue criminal state and everyone in its government should be put to death. The state should be dissolved and the land should be returned to its remaining indigenous populations.
Im not going to support or condemn this, i think this could be a good topic of conversation, but really quick question: what happens to everyone else who lives there in that scenario?
What happened to the Rhodesians?
They would either stay there and live under the governments that were established or go back to where they came from. Maybe without the criminal USAmerican regime that projects violence as its standard foreign policy towards any nation who attempts a different socioeconomic system maybe some of those governments would be socialist and their lives would improve? Maybe without the regressive USAmerican influence on global politics a framework of global socialism can be established.
From a very basic google sesrch, Rhodesia seems to have been conquered by britain in roughly 1923, then regained independence in 1979/1980. That is about 57 years. The US has been around for 250, longer if you count the colonies preceeding it. They arent really at the point where they can just “go back”. Also “go back to where they came from” okay. So, the guy born and raised in the middle of… Lets say, Vermont. His father and mother were both born in the US. Their parents were born in the US. Their parents were born in Russia, China, and Spain. Where does he go? None of these countries have a language he can speak, a culture that he is familiar with, a similar climate, or any real connection to him. Additionally, i agree that the USA should probably back off from attacking other countries, and that they can be a but stuck in the past on a few topics… But socialism doesnt work at scale. It either becomes capitalism with slightly more restrictions on buisnesses, (which is good, but is still capitalism), or it causes millions to starve to death. (Similar to Communism). (Not the point of the conversation, though)
Oooh you’re a moron. I’m going to block you because you have worthless opinions I never want to read.
I’m legitimately trying to find out how you think this could work. I have You a real-world example of someone who lives in the US, and asked what would happen to this person. If you would like to explain your thinking on how any of thst would work, please, tell me.
You can, that’s what extradition is for.
Extradition is a legal process that would require US to the recognize the jurisdiction of the ICC, be party to the Rome statute and sign an extradition treaty with them. You can’t extradite someone to a place you don’t recognize as having authority.
It’s not the only path, if Interpol were to issue an arrest warrant for the ICC (which they did for different cases before) extraditing him from the US would be legal regardless of the Rome statute.