Zohran Mamdani, a democratic nominated for the mayor of New York, said the New York Times that if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyah was developed by the city, he would direct the New York Department (NYPD) to arrest him.
This is a repetition of the Zohran Mamdani campaign statement, where he undertook to observe the order of the International Criminal Court for Netanyahu. In an interview with NYT 11. September he told the document that Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal who commits genocide in Gaza and has given details of how he plans to fulfill his promise.
Asked if he would order the police to arrest Netanyahu in the city, said, “That’s something I intend to meet.”
Netanyahu’s office did not answer questions, NYT said. He added that the spokesman of the General Consulate of Israel in New York refused to express himself
Arrest Netanyahu: What did Mamdani say?
Mamdani has given details of how he would do this if the federal government’s attitude differs, and said the contribution that he would refer to the Gavin Newsom decision of 2004, which is now Governor of California. Then, as the mayor of San Francisco, Newsom issued marital licenses for the same sex couples, despite the Federal law.
“It is a moment when we cannot look at the federal government of leadership. This is the moment when cities and states will have to prove what it looks like for our own values, our own people,” Mamdani told the newspaper.
In particular, Mamdani also said paper that he would do the same if Russian President Vladimir Putin came to NYC. In particular, Putin has an ICC order since 2023 after the invasion of Ukraine.
Trump vs ICC: The US does not recognize the jurisdiction of ICC
NYT, however, quoted legal experts that the arrest of Netanyahua would be a “practical impossibility” and could even “violate federal law”, except for the evocation of strong reactions to the Jewish community of the city.
In particular, the US is not a party to ICC and US President Donald Trump has previously moved to punish the court for its order against Netanyahu.
Experts also stated that Mamdani’s step towards Netanyah or Putin would put him in a direct conflict with the US federal government. Matthew C. Waxman, a professor at the Law Faculty of Columbia, said that the statement is “a political stuntman rather than a serious policy of law enforcement”.
Beth van Schaack, US Ambassador for Global Criminal Judgment under former US President Joe Biden, said that the arrest could be theoretically possible, but it is not clear whether NYPD would be entitled to arrest.
It is also not clear whether NYPD would follow Mamdani’s instructions on this matter, the report added.
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