Khanna renews Netanyahu arrest calls just as Mamdani admits he can't legally do it

WASHINGTON, DC: A progressive member of the Democratic Party, Ro Khanna, backed New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s call to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) had issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2024, as it found reasonable grounds to believe he bears criminal responsibility for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Ro Khanna calls for Netanyahu's arrest during US visit

Ro Khanna, who is often seen backing the progressive and socialist section of the Democratic Party, on Friday, July 24, urged the president to arrest Netanyahu ahead of the Israeli PM's visit to the US next week.

“The American president should arrest Netanyahu or [Russian President Vladimir] Putin in accordance with international law,” Khanna told MeidasTouch reporter Pablo Manriquez in a hallway interview on Capitol Hill.

“Full stop. America needs to cooperate with the ICC,” the Democratic lawmaker continued, referring to the International Criminal Court.

“It’s a matter of human rights, and it’s a matter of a rules-based international order, and he should order the marshals to arrest someone if they come to our jurisdiction,” he added.

Khanna's call to arrest Netanyahu comes nearly a week after his West Bank detention, during which he accused Israeli settlers and the IDF of briefly holding him during a visit to a small Palestinian village.

Ro Khanna's message to Israel before Netanyahu's visit

“Free advice to the Israelis: It’s not a good idea to detain long-shot presidential candidates,” he told The New York Times, adding that this experience would inform his potential campaign. “Not how you’re going to build goodwill with the next American president, whoever that is.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to visit Washington, DC, next week. The much-awaited meeting will be the first in-person discussion between President Trump and Netanyahu after their joint military operation against Iran.

Zohran Mamdani mulls arresting Netanyahu

Mamdani has long maintained that his administration would move to enforce the ICC's 2024 arrest warrant against Netanyahu, who is expected to visit New York for the United Nations General Assembly.

As recently as last week, he told The New York Times he was actively working with his legal team on how such an arrest might be carried out. In a video posted Tuesday, Mamdani offered his clearest acknowledgment yet that the plan is not legally viable

However, Mayor Mamdani conceded on Tuesday that his administration does not have the legal authority to arrest Netanyahu, backing away from a pledge he had repeated since his mayoral campaign.