New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing fierce backlash after publishing a social media post marking “Nakba Day,” with critics accusing him of distorting the history surrounding Israel’s founding in a message posted shortly before Shabbos began for Jewish New Yorkers.

Mamdani, who has repeatedly criticized Israel, used Friday night’s commemoration of what Palestinians refer to as the “catastrophe” tied to Israel’s establishment on May 14, 1948, to spotlight the story of city resident and self-described “Nakba survivor” Inea Bushnaq in a professionally produced video shared online.

“Today marks Nakba Day, an annual remembrance to commemorate the expulsion of more than 700,000 Palestinians between 1947 and 1949 during the creation of the State of Israel and the year that followed,” the mayor wrote on his official X account.

“Inea is a New Yorker and a Nakba survivor. She shared her story with us – one of home, tradition and memory over generations.”

In the accompanying video, Bushnaq recounts leaving Jerusalem at age nine because, she said, “the Zionists were coming into Jerusalem.”

The video also alleges that the displacement of Palestinians “continues to this day.”

The mayor’s remarks drew immediate condemnation from Jewish activists and supporters of Israel, who accused him of inflaming tensions and presenting a one-sided version of history at a time of rising antisemitic attacks.

“Mamdani is dangerous, he’s evil, he is stirring the pot of hate,” Americans Against Antisemitism founder Dov Hikind told The NY Post.

“He is corrupting history,” Hikind added.

In 1947, the United Nations voted to partition the British Mandate of Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states. Jewish leaders accepted the proposal, while five Arab nations — Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq — rejected it and went to war against the newly declared State of Israel after its independence in 1948.

Israel ultimately won the war, and Arab nations later established Nakba Day to commemorate the defeat and displacement that followed.

Mamdani’s post sparked widespread outrage online, with critics accusing him of promoting propaganda while ignoring the suffering of Jews expelled from Arab lands after Israel’s creation.

“He ignores that roughly 850,000 Jews were expelled or forced to flee Arab countries in the years that followed,” one critic wrote on X.

Another commenter argued that Nakba Day is not simply about mourning, but “is a movement that rejects Israel’s existence (and along with it millions of Jews).”

“In a city where Jews are already facing rampant harassment and violence, this kind of one-sided historical revisionism fuels hostility toward Jews,” the commenter added.

The post’s video montage also featured Palestinian-themed artwork displayed inside Inea’s home. One of the pieces shown was a vintage “Visit Palestine” poster designed in 1936 by Frank Krausz — a Holocaust survivor and Zionist Jew.

Critics pointed to the inclusion of the poster as especially ironic given the anti-Israel framing of the video, noting that Krausz himself strongly supported Zionism and Jewish statehood.

Israeli activist Hen Mazzig was among those who publicly criticized Mamdani’s post, sharing his own family’s history of persecution and expulsion from Arab countries.“My grandmother fled North Africa and Iraq after the Farhud [pogrom] of 1941. Six years before any war over Israel. Palestinians were expelled during a war Arab states launched against us. Over 850,000 Jews were driven from Arab lands. Almost none remain,” Mazzig wrote.

“Maybe the mayor of New York should stay out of it. Or speak to both. Don’t weaponize one trauma while actively erasing another. Especially when using this ‘Visit Palestine’ poster created by Frank Krausz, a Holocaust survivor and a Zionist Jew.”

As anti-Israel demonstrations continue throughout New York City, including protests outside synagogues, critics noted that Mamdani has declined to denounce many of the disruptive rallies and has instead continued voicing support for the protest movement.

“This video provokes and justifies acts of revenge and hate on Jews and Jewish Synagogues across NYC,” one commenter wrote, while another accused the mayor of “leaving out some key historical facts.”

“Ok!! I’m done being nice… You are putting Jews everywhere at risk by not providing historical context for this,” United Jewish Teachers President Moshe Spern posted on X.

“You are putting Jews in harms way!! Enough is enough!!”

Mamdani’s ties with many Jewish leaders have remained strained since his mayoral campaign last year, largely due to controversial statements and his vocal criticism of Israel.

His wife, First Lady Rama Duwaji, has also faced scrutiny over past social media activity praising Palestinian terrorists, attacking Israel, and allegedly liking posts celebrating the October 7 terrorist massacre carried out by Hamas terrorists in Israel.

Mamdani defended his wife after the controversy surfaced, while Duwaji apologized in April for the “hurt” caused by the posts, though she stopped short of directly apologizing for the anti-Israel content itself.