New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is apparently under the impression that running the five boroughs comes with international law enforcement powers. As Conservative Brief reported, Mamdani told The New York Times he is in an "active conversation" with city legal officials about whether he could arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if Netanyahu visits New York for the United Nations General Assembly in September.
Let that sink in. The mayor of a city that still cannot figure out how to keep the subway running on time is exploring the possibility of slapping handcuffs on a sitting head of state. Aim high, I guess.
Mamdani's reasoning is that the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu in 2024 over alleged war crimes related to Israel's military campaign in Gaza. "He's a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court," Mamdani said. "And what you will find is that is an opinion that is held by many, purely because of what his actions have wrought over these last many years."
There is just one small problem. Several small problems, actually. The United States is not a party to the ICC. Foreign policy is a federal responsibility. Sitting foreign heads of government generally receive diplomatic protections while visiting the U.S. And, to put it gently, the mayor of New York City is not exactly in the chain of command when it comes to international arrest warrants.
To his credit, Mamdani seems at least partially aware of this. "Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that's what we will do, but we won't be writing our own laws to that end," he said. So basically: we will do what we can do, which is almost certainly nothing.
Netanyahu, for his part, does not seem to be losing any sleep. Speaking with New York radio host Sid Rosenberg, the Israeli prime minister called the arrest threat "silly" and said he was not concerned about visiting New York. He also went considerably further, accusing Mamdani of siding with Hamas and even secretly hating America. "In fact, I think secretly, he hates America," Netanyahu said, which is quite the accusation to level at an elected American official based on a disagreement about arrest jurisdiction.
Ambassador Mike Waltz also weighed in on social media, helpfully listing all the legal reasons this will never happen, including the UN Headquarters Agreement and the fact that the U.S. does not recognize ICC jurisdiction.
Mamdani has rejected accusations that he supports Hamas or is antisemitic, saying his criticism targets the Israeli government's conduct in Gaza rather than Jewish people.
The whole situation is a fascinating case study in what happens when a city official decides municipal governance is too boring and international diplomacy is where the real action is. Mamdani first floated the idea of arresting Netanyahu during his mayoral campaign, which tells you everything you need to know about what kind of campaign promises New Yorkers are getting these days. Forget fixing potholes. This guy is going after world leaders.
Whether Netanyahu actually visits New York in September remains to be seen. But if he does, it is safe to say the NYPD will not be rolling up to the UN with a pair of zip ties and a dream.
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