New York, Jul 22 (V7N) – New York City Mayor Zohar Mamdani has said the city does not have the legal authority to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant, but urged the US federal government to take action.

In a video message posted on X on Tuesday (July 21), Mamdani described Netanyahu as a "war criminal" and said the Israeli leader would not be welcome in New York City.

"Let me be clear, we do not have the independent legal authority to execute this warrant. However, the federal government does have that authority. I urge them to join the International Criminal Court and execute this arrest warrant," Mamdani said.

Earlier this month, in an interview with The New York Times, the mayor said New York City's legal department had been examining whether it would be possible to arrest Netanyahu if he attends the United Nations General Assembly in September.

On Monday, US President Donald Trump said in a social media post that Netanyahu would not be arrested under any circumstances while visiting the United States, although he did not directly mention Mamdani.

During his mayoral campaign last year, Mamdani pledged to seek the enforcement of the ICC arrest warrant against Netanyahu if the Israeli leader visited New York. In Tuesday's video, however, he said a legal review had concluded that the city lacks the jurisdiction to carry out such an arrest.

Despite that conclusion, Mamdani maintained his position.

"I want to make it clear that Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City. Likewise, no fugitive war criminal is welcome here," he said.

Responding to the mayor's remarks, Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, criticized Mamdani in a statement on social media.

"Enough is enough. You were elected to serve the people of New York, not to campaign for Hamas. Do your duty," Danon wrote.

In 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes linked to the Gaza conflict.

The ICC alleges that the two leaders used starvation as a method of warfare by restricting humanitarian aid to Gaza and deliberately targeted civilians during military operations against Hamas. Israel has repeatedly rejected the allegations, denying any violations of international law.

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