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NYC Mayor Mamdani says Netanyahu is a war criminal and explores arrest if he visits

newsJul 22, 2026631,533

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a "war criminal" and said city lawyers are "in active conversation" about whether the city could arrest him if he visits New York. Mamdani in a video address challenged the U.S. government to execute the International Criminal Court arrest warrant for Netanyahu and urged federal enforcement. Reporting in the Times quoted Mamdani acknowledging that New York City cannot itself execute an international arrest warrant and that his legal team is exploring the limited options available. The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, a step the White House has condemned; a presidential proclamation says the United States opposes ICC actions against Israel and warned of consequences for ICC officials. Mamdani specified that Netanyahu is "the architect of a horrific genocide against the Palestinian people" and tied the mayoral push to calls for federal action rather than municipal unilateral arrest. The immediate practical consequence is a renewed public demand that the federal government decide whether to enforce the ICC warrant if Netanyahu enters U.S. jurisdiction, while New York officials continue legal review.

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