Election of ‘Hamas supporter’ Mamdani means New York Jews should flee to Israel, says minister

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli laments the election of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City, calling him a Hamas supporter and urging New York Jews to move to Israel.

“The city that was once a symbol of global freedom has handed over its keys to a Hamas supporter — to someone whose positions are not far from those of the jihadist fanatics who, 25 years ago, murdered 3,000 of its own people,” Chikli writes on X, referencing the 9/11 attacks.

“This is a critical turning point for the city of New York,” he adds. “The choice New York has made shakes the very foundations of the place that gave freedom and the opportunity for success to countless Jewish refugees since the end of the 19th century — a place that became home to the largest Jewish community in the world outside of Israel.”

Chikli suggests that the changing face of New York “didn’t happen overnight — it began with the anti-Zionist atmosphere on campuses overtaken by Qatari money, continued with the violent demonstrations of Hamas supporters at CUNY, NYU and especially Columbia University, which became the stronghold of Hamas support in the United States — and reached its peak this morning, when the last of the bullies who back Hamas’s rapists and murderers was elected mayor.”

The minister asserts that “New York will never be the same again, especially not for its Jewish community. The city is walking with open eyes into the abyss that London has already plunged into… it’s pointless to waste words claiming that everything will be fine. Nothing will be fine in this city.”

Chikli ends his statement by saying that he invites “the Jews of New York to seriously consider making their new home in the Land of Israel.”