From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
NYC’s Mamdani says ‘Globalize the intifada’ and ‘From the river to the sea’ show ‘desire for Palestinian rights’
New York State Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, a leading progressive in the city’s mayoral primary race, dodges the opportunity to condemn the phrases “globalize the intifada” and “from the river to the sea,” saying they are an expression of a desire for Palestinian rights.
In an interview with the Bulwark podcast, Mamdani says that he is “less comfortable with the idea of banning the use of certain words.”
He is then asked specifically about the phrases “Globalize the intifada” and “From the river to the sea.”
“I know people for whom those things mean very different things,” Mamdani says. “To me, what I hear from so many, is a desperate desire for equality and equal rights in standing up for Palestinian human rights.”
“What’s difficult also is the very word has been used by the Holocaust Museum when translating the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising into Arabic, because it’s a word that means ‘struggle,'” he says, apparently referring to the Washington institution.
“And as a Muslim man who grew up post 9/11 I am all too aware of how Arabic words can be twisted, can be distorted, can be used to justify any kind of meaning,” he says. “And I think that’s where it leaves me with a sense that what we need to do is focus on keeping Jewish New Yorkers safe.”
Mamdani’s comments were first reported by Jewish Insider.
The phrase “From the river to the sea” has been used by Palestinian nationalist movements for decades, as well as by terror groups. Pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel activists say it is a call for liberation, while Israel and many Jewish groups view it as a call to wipe out the State of Israel.
“Intifada,” Arabic for “uprising,” is often associated with the Second Intifada, a period of terror attacks in Israel in the early 2000s marked by deadly suicide bombings.
Mamdani, on The Bulwark podcast, says ‘Globalize the Intifada’ chant signifies, to him, a call for Palestinian human rights.
Adds: “The word has been used by the Holocaust Museum when translating the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising into Arabic — because it’s a word that means struggle.” pic.twitter.com/k2yeiSJpMy
— Jacob N. Kornbluh (@jacobkornbluh) June 17, 2025
The Times of Israel Community.