Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is ridiculing New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani's pledge to arrest him if he visits the city, calling the campaign promise "silly."
"I'm not concerned," Netanyahu told reporters before his meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, reports Forward. "There's enough craziness in the world, but I guess it never ends… It's silly in many ways, because it's just not serious."
Trump then added: "I'll get him out."
It was not clear if Trump meant he'd get the prime minister released if he was arrested, or if he would examine getting Mamdani, who was born in Uganda, deported if he is in the United States illegally.
Trump also reiterated his attacks on Mamdani, a democratic socialist, calling him a communist and assuring reporters that Netanyahu "will be fine."
Netanyahu also questioned why the media assumes Mamdani will be elected as mayor in November.
"How do you know who the mayor will be?" he asked them. "I don't know that."
The International Criminal Court issued a warrant for Netanyahu's arrest last year, accusing him, along with Hamas commander Mohammed Deif and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, of engaging in war crimes in connection with the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
The United States is not a member state of the ICC.
Mamdani, 33, the state assemblyman who won the Democratic Party primary in New York City last month, pledged last November that if he is elected, Netanyahu would be arrested if he comes to town.
"As mayor, New York City would arrest Benjamin Netanyahu," he told MSNBC at the time. "This is a city that our values are in line with international law."
According to a recent survey, general election voters said they don't agree with Mamdani's pledge to have Netanyahu arrested, with 36% saying they support acting on the ICC's warrant, 45% saying they oppose it, and 19% saying they were undecided or had no opinion.
Israel has asked the judges at the Hague-based court to withdraw the warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant while the ICC reviews Israeli challenges to its jurisdiction over the war.
Netanyahu is in New York City each September to attend the United Nations General Assembly, and traveled to Washington, D.C., this week to meet with Trump, his national security team, Vice President JD Vance, and congressional leaders.
Israel and the United States are working to reach a deal with Hamas for a ceasefire and for the release of remaining hostages who were taken when Hamas raided Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
On Monday, Netanyahu presented Trump with a letter nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize. In it, he cited the president's push for a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, as well as efforts to extend the Abraham Accords.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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