Mamdani blames ‘miscommunication’ after NYPD rejects police escort for wife’s Syria-Lebanon trip

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: A public dispute over security for New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s wife, Rama Duwaji, has ended with the mayor blaming a “miscommunication” between his administration and the New York Police Department (NYPD).

Mamdani’s office had initially said, on Tuesday, August 11, that Duwaji would receive an NYPD security detail during her planned September trip to Syria and Lebanon, but the department later said it would not send officers for personal travel to countries under Level 4 travel advisories. 

City Hall reverses course on Rama Duwaji’s security detail

Duwaji, a 29-year-old Syrian-American artist, is expected to travel to Syria and Lebanon to visit family. Both countries are subject to Level 4 travel advisories from the State Department, which warn Americans against traveling there because of extremism concerns.

The dispute began after Mamdani’s spokeswoman, Dora Pekec, said that Duwaji's security detail would accompany her based on what she described as a strong recommendation from the NYPD.

The NYPD then publicly rejected that account, saying it does not send officers to countries under Level 4 travel advisories for discretionary travel unrelated to investigative work. “This is not an investigative trip, and therefore, NYPD personnel will not be traveling there for it,” a department spokesperson said.

Mamdani later addressed the conflicting statements, attributing them to a “miscommunication” and confirming that his wife would travel without an NYPD detail. “There was a miscommunication. She has not yet taken that trip, and when she takes that trip it will be without any NYPD detail,” the 34-year-old said.

A source familiar with the matter told The New York Post that City Hall had not checked with Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch before announcing that NYPD officers would accompany Duwaji.

Former Police Commissioner Bill Bratton described the prospect of sending NYPD officers to Syria and Lebanon for a personal trip as “ill-advised,” saying such an assignment would require significant coordination with federal authorities.

Dispute highlights communication gap between City Hall and NYPD

The conflicting statements have also highlighted the importance of coordination between the mayor’s office and the NYPD on security matters. David Catalfamo, a former communications director for Governor George Pataki, said law enforcement typically has significant authority over security decisions.

“I suspect communication between the mayor’s office and the police department will be better in the future,” Catalfamo said. “The political folks want to run ahead of the story. It doesn’t work that way when it comes to security.”

He added that the NYPD has a responsibility to protect the mayor and his family but that such protection has limits for overseas personal travel. “The NYPD wants to be there to protect the mayor and his family, but there are limits. Going to Syria and Lebanon is not like buying a ticket on Amtrak,” Catalfamo said.

The episode also comes against the backdrop of differences between Mamdani and Tisch on policing and public safety. Tisch has previously publicly disagreed with the mayor over several issues, although the two have also appeared together at crime-fighting events and highlighted reductions in crime.