Zohran Mamdani’s claim that Benjamin Netanyahu “belongs in The Hague” was never a real law-enforcement plan. It was political theater.
During a New York Times interview, Mamdani suggested he wanted Netanyahu arrested if the Israeli prime minister came to New York City. But a mayor does not control U.S. foreign policy, international treaties, or the legal status of visiting foreign leaders. New York City has now acknowledged it does not have the authority to enforce the International Criminal Court warrant against Netanyahu.
The legal problems were obvious from the start. The ICC was created by the Rome Statute, and the United States is not a party to it. The ICC itself describes the Rome Statute as the treaty that established the court, while U.S. policy has long rejected being bound by it.
That did not stop Mamdani from turning Netanyahu into a campaign prop.
Just as revealing is The New York Times’ role. In a wide-ranging interview that covered multiple issues, the paper chose to spotlight Israel and Netanyahu in its social clips, knowing exactly what kind of engagement that would generate.
Mamdani may be trying to energize his base with a power he does not actually have. But The New York Times has its own power: deciding what millions of people see, share, and treat as the story.
And once again, it chose Israel.
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© Divuach Ne’eman R”A, 2025
