Trump rejects Mamdani threat to arrest Israel’s Netanyahu for war crimes

US president insists Netanyahu volition not beryllium arrested, contempt ICC warrant.

United States President Donald Trump has dismissed a menace from New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani to apprehension Israel’s Prime Minister for warfare crimes should helium sojourn the city.

Trump insisted that Benjamin Netanyahu “will not beryllium arrested, successful immoderate way, shape, oregon form” portion successful the US.

The president made the pledge connected Monday successful a societal media station that did not sanction Mamdani straight but credited Israel with helping the US successful its warfare connected Iran.

Mamdani earlier said his medication is inactive considering whether to apprehension Netanyahu should helium be the United Nations General Assembly successful New York this September.

“I judge that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs successful The Hague,” Mamdani said successful an interrogation published connected Saturday.

The International Criminal Court issued an apprehension warrant for Netanyahu successful 2024, charging him with committing warfare crimes during Israel’s genocidal warfare connected Gaza.

“He’s a warfare transgression who has been charged by the International Criminal Court,” Mamdani added, saying that his presumption is shared by many, fixed the actions the Israeli PM has “wrought implicit these past galore years”.

Mamdani said his medication is inactive considering whether to apprehension Netanyahu should helium be the United Nations General Assembly successful New York successful September [Olga Fedorova/EPA]

Mamdani said helium remains uncertain whether helium has the ineligible authorization to nonstop the constabulary department, which helium oversees, to detain a overseas person and that helium is successful “an progressive conversation” with the city’s Law Department.

“Whatever the instrumentality allows maine to bash successful New York City, that’s what we volition do, but we won’t beryllium penning our ain laws to that end,” helium said.

During his mayoral campaign, Mamdani warned that helium would bid constabulary to apprehension Netanyahu if helium acceptable ft successful the city, framing it arsenic enforcement of the ICC warrant.

Netanyahu typically travels to New York each September for the UN gathering.

Posting connected X, Israel dismissed Mamdani’s remarks, calling the ICC a “kangaroo court” and its warrant “bogus”, portion accusing him of trying to divert attraction from his ain troubles.

The ICC, established successful 2002 to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and warfare crimes, has jurisdiction which Israel rejects; neither Israel nor the United States is simply a subordinate of the court.

The Trump medication has launched a campaign to effort to disable the ICC, imposing sanctions connected judges, prosecutors and groups that question rulings against Israel implicit allegations of quality rights violations.