New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani declined on Wednesday to describe the Hamas-led terrorist attacks of Oct. 7 as a genocide while defending his position that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should face arrest under the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.
“I consider Oct. 7 to be a horrific war crime,” Mamdani said during a Wednesday morning press conference when asked whether he viewed the attacks as an act of genocide.
“I consider it to be something that should be deeply opposed with every single fiber of our being,” he said. “What brings me to my conclusions about Israel and Palestine, and about the world beyond, is a belief in the universality of humanity.”
Mamdani argued that such a principle requires opposing “all” crimes against humanity, saying, “We cannot pick and choose which crimes against humanity we oppose. We must be in opposition to all of them.”
The mayor’s remarks came a day after he acknowledged in a video statement that New York City lacks the legal authority to execute the ICC’s arrest warrant for Netanyahu, reversing his earlier campaign pledge to seek the Israeli leader’s arrest if he visited the city. Mamdani instead urged the federal government to enforce the warrant, again accusing the Israeli prime minister of genocide, even though the United States is not a party to the international tribunal.
“In the video, I made very clear, as I have before, that my interest in executing that warrant is not specific to Benjamin Netanyahu, but to anyone for whom they put forward a warrant for war crimes and crimes against humanity,” he said.
“Part of that is a reflection of universal politics,” Mamdani added. “It is from a universal politics that I can look at Oct. 7 and describe it for what it is, which is a horrific war crime. I can also look at Benjamin Netanyahu and see the way that he has orchestrated this genocide and similarly deem him to be a war criminal.”
The mayor was also asked what he would tell Palestinian New Yorkers disappointed that he could not fulfill his campaign promise to arrest Netanyahu and what they should do if the Israeli premier attends the U.N. General Assembly in New York in September.
“I think one of the bedrocks of our city is protest,” Mamdani said. “It is part of what makes our city so special—that New Yorkers can express themselves, whether they are in support or opposition, no matter the topic.”
When pressed on whether he was encouraging demonstrations, Mamdani stopped short of doing so.
“I am simply saying that this is a city where, if anyone feels a level of frustration or opposition, protest is something that we will always respect,” he said. “I leave it to New Yorkers themselves to make that decision.”
