New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani drew both praise and criticism Tuesday after admitting in a video that he lacks the authority to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his upcoming visit.
In a video posted to X, Mamdani called on the federal government to execute an international law arrest warrant against Netanyahu, but admitted that New York City didn’t have “independent legal authority” to do it themselves.
“My administration has reviewed every avenue available under applicable law to determine whether New York City could execute the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant if Benjamin Netanyahu came here,” Mamdani said. “It is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant.”
While Mamdani repeatedly referred to Netanyahu as a “war criminal” and Israel’s occupation of Gaza as a “genocide,” he appeared to back away from his campaign promise to seek Netanyahu’s arrest, despite reiterating the pledge just days earlier—a stance that prompted President Donald Trump to declare Monday that the Israeli prime minister would not be arrested “in any way, shape, or form.”
Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal. pic.twitter.com/YRezmW6YVx
— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) July 22, 2026
Mamdani’s video message soon went viral on X, garnering over 13 million views and 15,000 comments at the time of writing. The update appeared to spark mixed reactions online, with some applauding the mayor for his “moral clarity” and criticism from others for being “performative.”
“This is the kind of moral clarity we need from every elected Democrat,” liberal political commentator Adam Mockler wrote in response on X. Meanwhile, actor Michael Rapaport, a vocal critic of Mamdani’s, roasted the mayor for the “music and everything” in the video
Podcaster Stephen L. Miller quipped on X, “Make-Pretend President realizes he is just a city mayor.”
For a roundup of reactions, keep reading.
Mamdani, ever conscious of his role as a leader and in legitimizing the broader democratic socialist movement, is setting the standard for 2028 Democratic presidential candidates by flatly declaring that the federal government has the authority to arrest Benjamin Netanyahu. https://t.co/zuM0OmI5nP
— Emma Vigeland (@EmmaVigeland) July 22, 2026
Wow.. the mayor of nyc wants to arrest the prime minister of Israel and delivery him to the ICC The United States is not part of the ICC, in fact the American Service members’ Protection Act explicitly prohibits the US government from cooperating with the ICC Extremely… https://t.co/tblfpWR9pT
— @jason (@Jason) July 22, 2026
Glad to see @NYCMayor not backing off from saying this, even under bad-faith attacks from pro-Israel, pro-genocide ghouls. But he also concedes he doesn’t have the power to arrest ICC indicted war criminal Netanyahu and calls out the US federal government for not joining the ICC. https://t.co/eIX4EC0K2q
— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) July 22, 2026
Pathetic. The United States stands with Israel. pic.twitter.com/9Hz6fm3169
— Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) July 22, 2026
This from the same guy who opposed Nicholas Maduro’s capture and arrest — despite him being indicted by the United States Southern District 2 times! This raging antisemite has no problem defending dictators, despots, and terrorist regimes. Sadly, he has not called for the… https://t.co/en4ZRbHXc8
— Mike Lawler (@lawler4ny) July 22, 2026
This may be the most horrific package of lies against the State of Israel ever promoted by a government official. Even Hamas does not lie to this extent! It is despicable and entirely unbecoming a mayor of New York City. To those who voted for this Jew-hater, shame on you. https://t.co/DkVJy6IrhJ
— David M Friedman (@DavidM_Friedman) July 22, 2026
This is the kind of moral clarity we need from every elected Democrat. https://t.co/Cv8BeQtuMF
— Adam Mockler (@adammocklerr) July 22, 2026
Shorter Mamdani: “Say… remember that bullshit where I said I could arrest Netanyahu? Well… I guess I can’t now because my legal team said so… but Trump can if he wanted.” What a joke. https://t.co/wKXeoZfogJ
— Joe Concha (@JoeConchaTV) July 22, 2026
With the music and everything, Fuck these blow job & his racist homophobic wife. https://t.co/O0laY9ZqOn
— MichaelRapaport (@MichaelRapaport) July 22, 2026
Make-Pretend President realizes he is just a city mayor.
— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) July 22, 2026
The Mayor of New York has no authority to arrest a foreign head of government. The United States is not a party to the ICC, and legal experts across the political spectrum have said his proposal has little basis in U.S. law. So what is this? A political performance built on…
— Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) July 22, 2026
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