Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor of New York City, said that if elected, he would direct the New York Police Department to arrest Israel’s prime minister if he sets foot in the city.

In an interview with The New York Times on Thursday, Mamdani described PM Benjamin Netanyahu as a war criminal responsible for genocide in Gaza. He said that if Netanyahu were to visit New York, he would “honour” the International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant for his arrest by ordering police to apprehend him at the airport.

Legal experts have warned that such a move would be virtually impossible and could breach federal law. Still, Mamdani doubled down, saying he would not retreat from the pledge. “This is something that I intend to fulfill,” he said. “It is my desire to ensure that this be a city that stands up for international law.”

The United States is not a party to the ICC and does not recognise its authority. President Donald Trump imposed measures against the court in February after it issued the warrant for Netanyahu, arguing that it had “no jurisdiction over the United States or Israel.”

Netanyahu, for his part, has dismissed the threats. Speaking in July, he said he was not worried about Mamdani’s comments. In a White House meeting with Trump, he called the idea of an arrest “silly in many ways,” adding: “I’m going to come there with President Trump and we’ll see.” 

“He'd better behave. Otherwise, he’s going to have big problems,” Trump added, referring to Mamdani.

The ICC warrant accuses Netanyahu of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, alleging he and another senior Israeli official “intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine.”

Mamdani has argued that Netanyahu even made military decisions while in New York that resulted in civilian deaths in the Middle East.

A recent New York Times and Siena University survey found New Yorkers broadly supported Mamdani’s stance on Israel and the war. Among Jewish likely voters, Mamdani held a narrow lead at about 30%, followed closely by current mayor Eric Adams and former Governor Andrew Cuomo.

Cuomo, Mamdani’s chief rival, has positioned himself as a staunch supporter of Israel and last November volunteered to join Netanyahu’s legal defence team, shortly after the ICC issued its warrant.

Trump said on Friday that New York Mayor Adams continuing his bid for reelection diminishes the chance of anyone defeating Democratic nominee Mamdani, but added that Adams is "free to do what he wants."

"It would seem to me that if he (Adams) stays in, if you have more than one candidate running against him (Mamdani), it can't be won," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, shortly after Adams said he was not ending his campaign for reelection.

"I would say that (Andrew) Cuomo might have a chance of winning if it were a one-on-one. If it's not one-on-one, it's going to be a hard race," Trump added.