Mayor Zohran Mamdani may have broken the law by threatening to arrest Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a local politician claimed – as he called for a formal state probe into Hizzoner.
State Assemblyman Simcha Eichenstein (D-Brooklyn) wrote a letter Monday to state Attorney General Letitia James asking her to probe possible “misconduct” by Mamdani because New York law “directly prohibits the mayor from ordering local law enforcement to arrest a specific individual.”
Eichenstein said although an elected official can express his opinion, he “cannot attempt to leverage their executive authority to direct law enforcement action against an individual based on personal, political or ideological views.”
The letter, obtained The Post, notes that the US does not recognize the International Criminal Court, which issued a warrant for Netanyahu’s arrest – so Mamdani cannot use an ICC warrant as a basis for alleged war crimes in Gaza.
“Under New York penal law, a public servant who knowingly performs an unauthorized act, and misuses their position to pressure law enforcement into making an arrest may be guilty of official misconduct, a Class A misdemeanor,” Eichenstein said.
“Given the potential serious implications of the mayor’s actions, I respectfully urge your office to examine this matter to determine whether any New York State laws have been violated, or if these actions constitute criminal official misconduct. … I trust that your office will conduct an appropriate review to ensure that the laws of New York State are faithfully upheld.”
Mamdani, 34, campaigned on arresting Netanyahu should the Israeli leader set foot on New York City soil for events like the United Nations General Assembly and recently reiterated that he would still like to pursue that action.
He caused a ruckus when he told the New York Times on Saturday, “I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” referring to the United Nations’ International Court of Justice — and said he was having an “active conversation’’ about trying to jail the PM when he comes to Manhattan for the UN General Assembly in the fall.
“When it comes to Benjamin Netanyahu, we’re speaking about someone who’s the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant, and he’s the subject of this arrest warrant for alleged crimes against humanity, for war crimes, and he’s the architect of the genocide against Palestinians in Gaza as Israel’s prime minister,” Mamdani said during a housing-related press conference.
“These are not facts of my personal assessment; they are facts of public record. And I believe that when we, when someone is charged with an International Criminal Court warrant, something that should be taken seriously, whether it’s Benjamin Netanyahu or it’s Vladimir Putin or whomever else.”
But the democratic socialist mayor said that he will comply with US laws, and reiterated that position on Monday.
“I’ve also made clear that my administration will follow all applicable local laws,” Mamdani told reporters.
“That is our commitment,” he said. “That is something that we will follow through on when it comes to adherence to local law. And that’s all I have now.”
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