New York mayor weighs arresting Netanyahu over ICC warrant if he attends UN General Assembly

The threat

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on July 18 that his administration is evaluating whether to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he travels to the city for the 81st UN General Assembly in September. Mamdani, speaking to the New York Times, pointed to the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant issued in November 2025 for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip.

I believe Prime Minister Netanyahu should be tried in The Hague. He is a war criminal indicted by the International Criminal Court.

The mayor said he is in "active talks" with the city's legal office to determine whether he has the authority to order the New York Police Department to detain a foreign head of government. He stressed that the city would act within existing law. "We will do everything the law allows us to do in New York, but we will not write new laws to achieve this," Mamdani said.

Legal hurdles

Legal experts immediately questioned whether a municipal leader can enforce an ICC warrant. The United States has never ratified the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the court, and therefore does not recognize its jurisdiction over American citizens nor is obligated to execute its arrest warrants. Foreign policy and diplomatic relations fall under exclusive federal authority, not local administrations.

Further complicating the picture is the 1947 Agreement Between the United Nations and the United States Regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, which generally obliges the U.S. to allow access to official delegations traveling to the UN, with only narrow national security exceptions. The interplay between these federal commitments and a mayor's potential action remains untested.

Netanyahu's response

Netanyahu dismissed Mamdani's statements as a political provocation and said he does not consider a credible arrest scenario during a U.S. visit. He rejected the ICC charges as baseless and challenged the court's jurisdiction, arguing that Israel does not recognize its authority. The Israeli leader also accused the mayor of being a supporter of Hamas and an enemy of Israel.

I am not worried. The mayor is a supporter of Hamas and an enemy of Israel.

Netanyahu is expected in Washington in the coming days to meet former President Donald Trump. His potential attendance at the September UN session would follow a similar visit in September 2025, when dozens of delegates walked out during his speech. At that time, despite the arrest warrant already having been issued, no legal action was taken against him on U.S. soil.

Political backdrop

Mamdani, 34, has been a vocal critic of the Israeli government and made the arrest pledge a campaign promise during his mayoral run. His latest remarks come as the ICC warrant continues to generate international friction. The court's move in November 2025 targeted both Netanyahu and Gallant for their roles in the Gaza conflict, drawing condemnation from Israel and its allies while being welcomed by human rights groups.

The mayor's initiative tests the boundaries between local politics and international diplomacy, and it has already drawn scrutiny from constitutional scholars. Whether the city's legal review will yield a viable path remains unclear, but the statement alone has elevated the issue ahead of the UN gathering.

What's next

The city's legal office is expected to deliver its assessment in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, Netanyahu's Washington trip and the September General Assembly will keep the spotlight on the enforcement of the ICC warrant. The U.S. federal government has not commented on Mamdani's remarks, and it is uncertain whether it would intervene if the mayor attempted to act.