New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani has faced fierce criticism from Democratic politicians and Jewish organisations after issuing a statement marking three years since Hamas’s attack on Israel while condemning Israel’s conduct in Gaza.
Mamdani described 7 October 2023 as a “profoundly painful” day and acknowledged Hamas’s “horrific war crimes”, including the killing of about 1,200 people in Israel and the taking of more than 250 hostages.
“We grieve alongside our many friends and neighbors who still carry that unthinkable loss,” he said.
But the mayor’s statement then focused extensively on Israel’s military campaign, referring to its “devastating, ongoing genocide in Gaza”. More than 74,000 deaths have been recorded in the enclave, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which is controlled by Hamas.
“Many New Yorkers are reckoning with this unbearable grief, and we mourn alongside them — all while knowing that our tax dollars fund these war crimes,” Mr Mamdani said.
He added: “Three years later, we must refuse to accept a world in which occupation and apartheid continue, where war crimes are met with impunity, and our federal government continues its complicity with every arms shipment.”
The wording prompted a backlash from several Democratic elected representatives, who accused Mr Mamdani of placing too much emphasis on Israel rather than Hamas.
Florida representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz accused the mayor of “desecrating the memory of murdered, innocent Jews”, while New Jersey representative Josh Gottheimer said he was “blam[ing] the victims” of the attack. Jersey City mayor Steven Fulop described the statement as “inappropriate and unnecessarily inflammatory”.
Richie Torres, the Democratic representative for the Bronx, said critics of Israel should, “for just one day—October 7th”, express condolences for the Israelis murdered, maimed, raped and abducted by Hamas.
Daniel Goldman, who lost a Democratic primary in his Manhattan and Brooklyn district to Brad Lander earlier this year, called Mr Mamdani’s message “reprehensible”.
Mr Goldman wrote that the mayor had presented “hotly disputed allegations” as fact while claiming to grieve with people affected by the attack.
Mr Lander, who was endorsed by Mr Mamdani, issued his own statement condemning Hamas but arguing against what he called a “flattening of empathy”. He said: “We can mourn for those lost on October 7th and still acknowledge the enormous imbalance of power between Israel and the Palestinians.”
Jonathan Greenblatt, chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League and a frequent critic of Mr Mamdani, said the mayor had not used the word “Jews” in his statement.
“You are weaponizing a day meant for mourning the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust to recycle your usual antizionist talking points,” Mr Greenblatt wrote.
Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, called the statement an “outrageous & disgusting rant”, while Ofir Akunis, Israel’s consul general in New York, described it as a “disgrace, shame, and insult to the memory of those who were murdered”.
Mamdani’s stance on Israel
Mr Mamdani has been a longstanding critic of Israel’s actions during the war with Hamas and has opposed US aid to Israel. His position has divided Democrats and attracted criticism from moderates, Jewish leaders and Israeli officials.
Before the 2025 Democratic mayoral primary, he vowed that he would seek the arrest of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu if Mr Netanyahu visited New York, citing an International Criminal Court warrant accusing him of war crimes.
Mr Mamdani later acknowledged that New York City did not have the power to execute the warrant. Israel has described the war crimes allegations as “absurd and false”.
When Mr Netanyahu visited New York last month to address the United Nations General Assembly, he accused Mr Mamdani of antisemitism and said that “many Jews no longer feel safe in New York”.
Mr Mamdani has rejected allegations that his criticism of Israel fuels antisemitism, arguing that criticism of a government and its policies is distinct from hostility towards a people.
Last month, he unveiled a plan to combat antisemitism, including a dedicated hotline and funding to improve security at synagogues. He said his aim was to ensure New York remained both “the most Jewish city in the United States of America” and a place where Jewish life could flourish.
