New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani told Theo Von he found it "strange" that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu singled him out during a U.N. General Assembly speech on Sept. 24, 2026. Netanyahu accused Mamdani of spreading falsehoods about Israel, while Mamdani reiterated his call for U.S. enforcement of an ICC arrest warrant issued for Netanyahu in November 2024. Mamdani said the naming was a distraction from accountability and emphasized that the dispute concerns alleged crimes, not a personal feud.
Mamdani Says It Was 'Strange' Netanyahu Named Him At U.N.; Repeats Call To Enforce ICC Warrant
Split-screen photo of Zohran Mamdani and Benjamin Netanyahu.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani told podcaster Theo Von he found it "strange" to be singled out by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during Netanyahu's address to the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 24, 2026.
Mamdani said he was meeting with the prime minister of the Netherlands at an LGBTQ center in downtown Manhattan when he returned to learn that Netanyahu had called him out by name from the U.N. podium.
A split image shows New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“So, to all those spreading these lies about my country and about our brave soldiers, whether they sit in this hall or in the office of the antisemitic mayor of New York, I say this: Shame on you,” Netanyahu said during the speech. “Shame on you for distorting the facts. Shame on you for inverting victim and aggressor. Shame on you for spitting in the face of truth, Mr. Mamdani.”
The exchange follows Mamdani's campaign promise to seek Netanyahu's arrest and his later call for the U.S. federal government to enforce an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) should the Israeli prime minister travel to New York. The ICC issued the warrant in November 2024 on allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity; Netanyahu and the Israeli government have rejected those allegations and challenged the court's authority.
On the podcast, Von asked whether being named by Netanyahu felt personal or frightening. Mamdani said it felt "strange" and described the public call-out as an attempt to distract from accountability:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters on Sept. 24, 2026, in New York City. World leaders gathered in New York for the annual session, with global issues ranging from the threat of artificial intelligence to the wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
“It's not about me and him. It's about the fact that he's the architect of a genocide,” Mamdani said. “And it's like, 'Yeah, if I was the architect of a genocide, I would probably talk about anything but that.'”
Mamdani also repeated his position that, if it were up to him, the U.S. would join the ICC and honor the court's warrants. He framed the dispute as focused on alleged crimes and international accountability rather than a personal feud.
The remarks came amid the U.N. General Assembly session where world leaders debated topics ranging from artificial intelligence risks to conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza. Reporters Emma Bussey and Michael Sinkewicz contributed to coverage of the original exchange.
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