Netanyahu intends to attend UN General Assembly in New York this autumn
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Fox News on Sunday that he is “not concerned” about New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s earlier threat to arrest him and that he plans to attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York this autumn. “I do intend to come to New York,” Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu accused Mamdani of “fomenting hate,” saying the mayor is supposed to represent all New Yorkers. “He’s fomenting hate. He’s supposed to be the mayor of all New Yorkers — Jews, Christians, Muslims, everyone,” Netanyahu said. “But he’s trying to turn one group against the other. I speak to Jewish Americans, and they’re afraid right now.”
The prime minister’s remarks referenced a pair of stabbings in New York on Thursday, in which a suspect allegedly attacked a Jewish man and an Asian man just blocks apart. The suspect allegedly shouted “Allahu akbar” during the attacks, according to police, and has been charged with hate crimes against each victim. Both men survived.
Mamdani’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The mayor, a staunch supporter of Palestinian rights, made opposition to Israel’s military operation in Gaza a central plank of his mayoral campaign last year. In an address last week, he called Netanyahu a “war criminal.”
As part of his campaign platform, Mamdani pledged to enforce a 2024 International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Netanyahu, which accuses the prime minister of committing war crimes in Gaza. However, after being pressed by the New York Times last week, Mamdani acknowledged that his administration had reviewed the law and found: “We do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant.” He urged the federal government to arrest Netanyahu instead and declared, “Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City.”
The ICC warrant stems from allegations that Israeli forces committed war crimes during the military campaign launched after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Israel has denied the charges, and Netanyahu has called them “bogus.” More than 73,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since the war began, including more than 21,000 children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose casualty figures the United Nations considers reliable.
Netanyahu is scheduled to fly to the United States on Monday and will meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday. He will also attend a funeral service for the late Senator Lindsey Graham. New York is not on his itinerary for this trip.