Trump Rejects Possibility of Netanyahu’s Arrest as New York Mayor Explores Legal Options Ahead of Potential U.N. Visit
President Donald Trump declared on Monday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would not be arrested under any circumstances while visiting the United States, responding after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said his administration is examining whether the city has the legal authority to arrest the Israeli leader during a potential visit in September.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump stated, “Benjamin Netanyahu will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America,” adding that the Israeli prime minister “is fighting against the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
Trump also said that “the only ones that should be arrested are the people that led Iran into this unprecedented SPIRAL OF DEATH AND DESTRUCTION, something that should have been dealt with years ago, by previous Presidents!”
Although Trump did not directly reference any specific statements, his remarks came after Mamdani told The New York Times that his office is reviewing whether New York City could arrest Netanyahu if he attends the United Nations General Assembly, which is scheduled to take place in September.
“I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” Mamdani said. “He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court. And what you will find is that is an opinion that is held by many purely because of what his actions have wrought over these last many years.”
Mamdani was referring to the International Criminal Court’s decision in 2024 to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Both Netanyahu and Gallant have denied the allegations. Netanyahu has previously argued that the Hague-based court was influenced by a “rogue prosecutor” who authorized the warrants.
When asked whether any law would allow him to carry out such an arrest, Mamdani replied, “That’s an active conversation with our legal department. However, what we’ve seen at the national level is a desire sometimes to write your own laws, to go outside of the bounds of legality. That’s not something we have an interest in.”
The ICC case stems from Israel’s military campaign in Gaza following the Hamas terrorist attack on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed approximately 1,200 people in Israel.
Netanyahu’s office on Sunday criticized both the ICC and Mamdani, who identifies as a democratic socialist and a Democrat.
“The ICC is a kangaroo court that has no jurisdiction over Americans or Israelis,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement posted on X. “Its bogus arrest warrant against Prime Minister Netanyahu was issued by a disgraced former ICC Prosecutor, Karim Khan, a few days before allegations of sexual misconduct against him became public.”
The statement also argued that Mamdani “should focus on fixing the damage his policies have caused New York” rather than supporting Khan.
“Like Karim Khan, Mamdani appears interested in diverting public attention from his follies and attacking the leader of the Jewish state and the only democracy in the Middle East,” the statement said.
Netanyahu’s office also defended Israel’s military operations in Gaza, which entered a ceasefire period in October 2025, saying the Israeli military had taken measures to minimize civilian casualties while targeting Hamas.
