Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has spoken out against Zohran Mamdani, referring to the Democratic New York City mayoral candidate’s proposed policies as “nonsense.”
During an appearance on the Full Send Podcast—which was filmed on July 8 in Washington, D.C., and premiered on Monday—Netanyahu engaged in a wide-ranging conversation with the right-wing hosts. He mentioned the protests across the U.S. in relation to the Israel-Hamas war, and accused participants of being “against” Israel and America.
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It was after this that one of the hosts, Aaron “Steiny” Steinberg, brought up Mamdani, the Muslim democratic socialist who celebrated a decisive victory after the Democratic mayoral primary in June.
“In New York City, right. Zohran? He’s an antisemitic guy in the highest population of Jews,” alleged Steinberg, seemingly referencing how the New York metropolitan area has the largest Jewish population in the United States.
Netanyahu responded by labeling Mamdani’s proposed policies as “nonsense” and said the 33-year-old assembly member would likely only serve “one term” if elected in November.
“A lot of people have been taken in by this nonsense. You want to defund the police? You want to have people go into stores and rob them and be free? You think that really creates a good society?” said Netanyahu. “Sometimes you have to get mugged by reality to understand how stupid that is.”
Mamdani has said he will “not defund the police.” Addressing that concern during a debate in June, he said: “I will work with the police because I believe the police have a critical role to play in creating public safety.” He went on to flag the numbers of unsolved crimes from this year alone, saying police need to have the time to “focus on those crimes” and that the city should have “mental health professionals and social workers” to address the “mental health crisis and homelessness.” The Democratic NYC mayoral candidate has also proposed city-run, non-profit grocery stores as part of his “affordability” platform.
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This isn’t the first tussle of words exchanged between Netanyahu and Mamdani.
In December, Mamdani said, if he were to become the Mayor, then New York City would arrest Netanyahu if he visited. Netanyahu has an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes, which Israel has strongly denied. The U.S. is not a signatory to the ICC.
During Netanyahu’s visit to the White House in early July, Mamdani’s mention of a possible arrest was brought up at a roundtable conversation. Netanyahu said he was “not concerned” about Mamdani’s vow, while President Donald Trump interjected: “I’ll get him out,” referring to the Democratic mayoral candidate.
It’s thought that Netanyahu may travel to New York in September, prior to the mayoral election, to speak at the U.N. General Assembly’s world leaders meeting.
Meanwhile, there have been numerous instances of Mamdani being referred to as “antisemitic” by critics. He has strongly rejected any accusations of antisemitism.
“It pains me to be painted as if I am somehow in opposition to the very Jewish New Yorkers that I know and love and are such a key part of this city,” Mamdani said in June.
The mayoral candidate has also vowed to increase spending to tackle hate crimes in New York by 800%. In an interview with NBC after his primary election victory, he said: “Ultimately, we cannot simply say that antisemitism has no home in this city or no place in this country. We have to do more than talk about it. We have to tackle it, and that’s what we will do through this funding and through this commitment, we will root out bigotry across the five boroughs.”
Mamdani, who is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, has faced criticism from Republicans and some Democrats, also.
After Mamdani’s victory in the primary, Republican Rep. Mike Lawler of New York said: “A radical, antisemitic socialist was just nominated to be the Democratic candidate for mayor of New York City—and Kathy Hochul [New York’s Governor] didn’t lift a finger to stop it from happening.” (Lawler is thought to be mulling over a potential run for New York Governor.)
Read More: Islamophobia Surges Online After Zohran Mamdani’s Win
In the immediate aftermath of Mamdani’s primary victory, Islamophobia surged online, research found.
Mamdani previously addressed his experience of Islamophobia during his campaign, sharing the impact it has on him.
“I get messages that say ‘the only good Muslim is a dead Muslim.’ I get threats on my life, on the people that I love,” he said in June. “I try not to talk about it, because the function of racism, as Toni Morrison said, is distraction.”