Netanyahu Responds Sharply to New York Mayor's Threat to Arrest Him During Visit

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has strongly responded to New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani's announcement that he intends to seek a legal basis to arrest Netanyahu during his planned visit to the city in September. Mamdani, who has previously criticized Israel, described Netanyahu as a "war criminal" and said he is in active discussions with the city's legal department to explore the possibility of ordering his arrest based on an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant.

Netanyahu dismissed the ICC as a "kangaroo court" lacking jurisdiction over Israelis or Americans and condemned the arrest warrant issued by former ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan as politically motivated. He accused Mamdani of trying to divert attention from his own failures and urged him to focus on repairing the damage his policies have caused to New York City.

The Israeli Prime Minister also defended Israel's actions during its conflict with Hamas, describing the group as a murderous terrorist organization using Palestinians as human shields and deliberately targeting innocent Israeli civilians.

In response to Mamdani's threat, Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon criticized the mayor for failing to manage the city effectively and ignoring rising antisemitism, suggesting that Mamdani himself should be arrested. Meanwhile, US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz rejected the mayor's threat, emphasizing that federal authority supersedes local officials and highlighting diplomatic immunity protections for visiting heads of state. Waltz called Mamdani's threat "pure political theater."