Mamdani staffer apologizes for old inflammatory social media posts against Israel, Jews

A staffer for New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani apologizes for old social media posts demonizing Israel and sharing other inflammatory statements.

“There is a barbaric nation who’s killing indigents and innocent Palestinians called ISRAEL,” Hassaan Chaudhary, a Muslim outreach director for Mamdani, wrote in 2012, according to a report by The New York Post.

In other posts, Chaudhary called Israel a “bloody country,” indicated that gay rights “doesn’t make sense,” and used a derogatory Urdu slur that translates literally as “Jew will be your father.”

He supported former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, saying Ahmadinejad “has declared Israel as cancer which will be eliminated very soon.”

The posts all date to around 2012. Chaudhary is now 31.

He also retweeted a post last year that suggested the Jewish Pennsylvania governor, Josh Shapiro, supported killing children in Gaza, the report says.

???????? TOP MAMDANI STAFFER PRAISED AHMADINEJAD, SLURRED JEWS, MOCKED GAYS

Hassaan Chaudhary, a senior figure on Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s team, is facing backlash over resurfaced posts praising Ahmadinejad, using “Jew” as a slur, and dismissing gay rights.

Chaudhary called… https://t.co/lAONqNFHru pic.twitter.com/hNmXNhi2V3

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) November 17, 2025

Chaudhary apologizes for the comments, telling The New York Post: “I apologize for my tweets, as they do not reflect my current views, or represent who I am today.”

“Those comments from over a decade ago are not in line with how I see the world, and I look back at that rhetoric and mindset with deep regret,” he says.

A Mamdani spokesperson says: “These comments from over a decade ago are reprehensible and in no way reflect the views of the Mayor-elect or this transition. The mayor-elect has made this clear internally and consistently during the campaign and transition.”