New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in an interview published Saturday that he believes Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should be arrested for war crimes if he visits the city in September for the United Nations General Assembly, but indicated that he would not try to amend laws to do so.

Speaking to The New York Times, Mamdani was asked about his campaign pledge to arrest Netanyahu, who has been charged with crimes against humanity for Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, following the October 7, 2023 massacre.

“I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague. He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court. 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,”  Mamdani said.

“I’ve also said that I will follow the laws that we have here in New York City because I believe that there is an importance in following the law as a leader who presides over our city,” he said, indicating that he would not seek to actively follow up on his threat.

Pressed on his intentions, Mamdani said that “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.”

Asked specifically what the laws allow, he sad there was “an active conversation with our legal department.”

Mamdani had vowed to send the New York Police Department to enforce arrest warrants against leaders wanted by the International Criminal Court, including Netanyahu or Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Mamdani has in the past cited an International Criminal Court war crimes arrest warrant as grounds for arresting Netanyahu, but the court does not have jurisdiction in the US, and US federal law makes it illegal for local government to cooperate with the court. A separate federal law prohibits imprisonment and obstruction of foreign officials, including heads of state.

Also, last year, New York........

© The Times of Israel