Can Mamdani stop Netanyahu from visiting New York? Here's who actually decides

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Mayor Zohran Mamdani spent months saying he would have Benjamin Netanyahu arrested if the Israeli prime minister set foot in New York City. Then, late last month, he changed course.

Mamdani told The New York Times his administration had reviewed the city's options and concluded it could not execute the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant against Netanyahu, even as he continued to call the Israeli leader a "war criminal" who is "not welcome" in the city and pressed the federal government to act instead.

Netanyahu, for his part, says none of it matters. He has the American media that he intends to attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York this September regardless of Mamdani's rhetoric, framing his trip as a chance to defend Israel from the podium.

Can Zohran Mamdani arrest Benjamin Netanyahu? 

No, New York City can’t enforce a warrant from the International Criminal Court, and that’s not just opinion; Mamdani’s administration confirmed it.

The city doesn’t have any local laws that would allow it to act on a warrant from a court the US never agreed to join.

Does the ICC warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu apply on US soil?

The ICC put out warrants for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024, accusing them of crimes against humanity and war crimes tied to Israel’s military actions in Gaza, charges like using starvation as a weapon, murder, persecution and other inhumane acts.

Israel categorically rejected the court’s authority and denied the allegations outright.

It is to be noted that the warrant carries no automatic force in the United States because the US never ratified the Rome Statute, the treaty that created the ICC; American authorities, federal, state or local, have no legal obligation to detain anyone the court names.

Has a mayor ever tried to block a foreign leader before?

Mamdani has acknowledged as much, telling reporters his office would not "write new laws" to manufacture authority the city doesn't have.

There’s really no example of a mayor even trying this, let alone succeeding. No American city has ever tried to detain a sitting head of government because of an ICC warrant. Even countries that signed on to enforce the ICC’s rules usually back off when it comes to arresting current leaders.

Take Mongolia in 2024, for example: government officials rolled out the red carpet for Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite the ICC warrant. South Africa and Jordan both hosted Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir while he was still under indictment, and neither made a move to arrest him.

If national governments that signed the Rome Statute are unwilling to cross that line, a single city without any treaty obligation stands even further back.

Why was this never a City Hall decision?

Even if Mamdani had wanted to take the issue further, the choice was out of his hands.

The 1947 UN Headquarters Agreement, signed by the US and passed into law by Congress, sets the rules: the United States has to let in foreign officials coming to New York for UN business.

That’s not just a guideline; it’s federal law. On top of that, there’s head-of-state immunity, which means sitting leaders are protected from arrest or prosecution in US courts, as long as the executive branch recognizes their status. That power doesn’t belong to a mayor or a local judge. It’s all up to the executive branch. 

President Trump wrote on Truth Social that Netanyahu will not be arrested (@realDonaldTrump/Truth Social)

The Trump administration has made clear it intends to hold that line. President Trump wrote on Truth Social that Netanyahu "will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America.”

This stance has lasting significance, it’s not just about today’s politics.

What happens if Mamdani tries to detain Netanyahu?

If Mamdani or city police tried to detain Netanyahu, federal agencies would step in. They're not just motivated by the legal protections already described, but also by the administration’s public promise to ensure Netanyahu’s safe passage.

The real deciding factor here isn’t what City Hall chooses to do. The federal government’s commitment determines whether Netanyahu walks into the UN General Assembly in September without any trouble.