The US president insists that Netanyahu will not be arrested despite the ICC warrant.
Published July 20, 2026
US President Donald Trump has dismissed New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani’s threat to arrest Israel’s prime minister for war crimes if he visits the city.
President Trump insisted that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “will not be arrested in any way” while in the United States.
The president made the pledge in a social media post on Monday, praising Israel for supporting the United States in its war against Iran, without directly naming Mamdani.
Mamdani earlier said his government was still considering whether to arrest Netanyahu if he attends the United Nations General Assembly in New York this September.
“I believe Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” Mamdani said in an interview published Saturday.
In 2024, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for committing war crimes during Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza.
“He is a war criminal who has been indicted by the International Criminal Court,” Mamdani added, saying his view was shared by many, given the actions the Israeli prime minister “has taken over the last few years.”
Mamdani said it remains unclear whether he has the legal authority to direct the police department he oversees to detain foreign leaders and said he was in “active discussions” with the city’s legal department.
“We’re going to do whatever we can do in New York City by law, but we’re not going to create our own laws to do that,” he said.
During his campaign for mayor, Mamdani warned that if Prime Minister Netanyahu set foot in the city, he would order police to arrest him under the guise of executing an ICC warrant.
Prime Minister Netanyahu typically travels to New York every September for United Nations gatherings.
Posting on X, Israel dismissed Mamdani’s comments, calling the ICC a “kangaroo court” and its warrants “a sham” and accusing Mamdani of trying to divert attention from his own problems.
The ICC was established in 2002 to prosecute genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, but it has jurisdiction that Israel denies. Neither Israel nor the United States are members of the court.
The Trump administration has launched a campaign to nullify the ICC, imposing sanctions on judges, prosecutors, and groups seeking judgment against Israel for alleged human rights abuses.
