U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz forcefully rejected New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s suggestion that Israeli Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu could be arrested during an expected visit to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, calling the proposal nothing more than “pure political theater.”

Responding to Mamdani’s comments in a post on social media, Waltz wrote, “Mayor Mamdani: here’s why your threat to arrest PM Netanyahu in NYC during UNGA is not going to happen.”

Waltz then laid out what he said were four legal reasons the mayor’s plan could not be carried out, writing: “1. The US is not a party to the Rome Statute that underlies the ICC, 2. The UN Headquarters Agreement grants diplomatic protections to visiting heads of government, 3. head-of-state immunity applies, & 4. federal authority trumps any local mayor’s wishes.”

He ended his response by declaring, “This is pure political theater.”

Earlier Saturday, Mamdani referred to Netanyahu as a “war criminal” and said his administration was exploring whether the Israeli leader could be arrested if he travels to New York.

Speaking with The New York Times, Mamdani said, “I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague. He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court.”

The mayor added that he is engaged in “active conversation” with New York City’s legal officials regarding the extent of his authority over the matter. “Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that’s what we will do, but we won’t be writing our own laws to that end,” he said.

Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, sharply condemned Mamdani’s remarks, accusing the mayor of neglecting his responsibilities at home.

“Mamdani is failing to govern New York. Instead of focusing on his responsibilities as mayor and confronting the rising wave of antisemitism in his city, he has chosen to incite hostility and generate headlines by attacking the State of Israel,” Danon said.

He added, “It will not change a thing. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu will come to New York, address the United Nations General Assembly with pride, and stand before the world to state Israel’s truth and its unwavering right to defend its citizens.”

Danon concluded with a jab at the mayor, saying, “And if anyone should be arrested, it is NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani.”

Israeli Consul General in New York Ofir Akunis also dismissed Mamdani’s comments, arguing that the mayor has no legal authority to detain a foreign head of government.

“The mayor of New York City has no authority to order the arrest of the Prime Minister of Israel. Instead of dealing with matters over which he has no authority, he should start running New York City and only New York City,” Akunis said.

{Matzav.com}