Forgot Your Password?

New to The Nation? Subscribe

Print subscriber? Activate your online access

.nation-small__b{fill:#fff;}

A Horrific ICE Shooting Is Testing Mamdani’s Approach to Trump

After a federal agent shot an immigrant in New York, activists are questioning Mamdani’s handling of the NYPD and his relationship with the White House.

President Donald Trump and New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani walk out following their meeting at Gracie Mansion on September 21, 2026, in New York City.

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani wants President Donald Trump to end all ICE operations in the city after a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot a man in his car in northern Manhattan on Thursday.

“This is an unconscionable and incredibly serious situation,” Mamdani said in a statement hours after the incident. “I have called the President; when we speak I will demand that he ends all ICE enforcement actions in our city. I will not stand by while ICE agents terrorize our communities.”

The NYPD said that around 4 pm on October 8, federal agents were involved in a shooting and injured a man in the city’s Marble Hill residential area, the northernmost part of Manhattan. The police statement said that the shooting victim was conscious and receiving medical attention. The victim was later identified as Oscar Belgal, a 28-year-old immigrant from the Dominican Republic. A 5-year-old boy, who police believe is Belgal’s son, was in the back seat.

Mayor Mamdani appeared at a press conference hours after the shooting. He told reporters that after a two-hour conversation with President Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, he had failed to negotiate Belgal’s release. The developments have tested Mamdani’s approach to Trump, with whom he has maintained cordial terms despite their disagreements on a number of topics including immigration enforcement.

The shooting has posed a new challenge for Mamdani, who faces pressure to respond to fears about law and order and placate his left-wing base, which wants to remove Jessica Tisch as police commissioner and stop the NYPD’s collaboration with ICE. The issue threatens to undermine a mayoralty that has so far tallied an impressive string of victories.

The incident comes just over two weeks after Mamdani hosted Trump at his official residence, Gracie........

© The Nation