NYC mayor: I’m looking forward to meeting with Netanyahu during UN General Assembly

New York City Mayor Eric Adams says he will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while the premier is in New York for the United Nations General Assembly.

Adams holds a press conference about security for the General Assembly, which starts next week. The UN Headquarters is in Manhattan.

Adams is asked if the NYPD is “preparing any arrests warrants” for foreign heads of state, in an apparent reference to Netanyahu.

Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, the heavy favorite to win the general election in November and become the next mayor, has said that, if elected, he will arrest Netanyahu if the premier visits New York.

“There are several heads of state I’m going to meet with, and I’m looking forward to meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu when he arrives in the city as well. He will be welcomed like our other dignitaries,” Adams says, according to a readout from his press office.

Mamdani has said he will arrest Netanyahu based on the International Criminal Court warrant for Netanyahu, although the New York City mayor does not have the authority to make such an arrest.

The court does not have jurisdiction in the US and federal law bars US entities, including local governments, from cooperating with the court. Mamdani has not explained how he would carry out such an arrest.

“It’s extremely significant to know that the United Nations is here for a reason. And there’s something called diplomatic immunity. And anyone that understands when you invite so many heads of state here, you want to do it [with] a level of security and with a level of understanding,” Adams says.

“You have a right to come here and voice the positions from your country. And we respect the rule of law here. We don’t react in a reckless manner [by] stating that we were going to arrest a dignitary that’s here. There are processes that are in place, and we will respect and we will carry them out accordingly,” he says.

Adams is close to New York Jewish communities and a firm supporter of Israel. He is polling in third place, far behind Mamdani, ahead of November’s general election.

Mamdani is a harsh critic of Israel who has alarmed many New York Jews with his anti-Israel rhetoric.

Second to Mamdani in polls is former New York governor Andrew Cuomo.

Cuomo is also a longtime supporter of Israel, but has voiced some criticism of the Gaza war in recent weeks. Adams has held to his pro-Israel line.