Mamdani stands by Oct. 7 statement after backlash from both sides
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Thursday he would not change his Oct. 7 anniversary statement, which mourned Hamas' victims but called Israel's war in Gaza a genocide. Jewish leaders and several Democrats called it offensive, and pro-Palestinian protesters booed him at a vigil. New York has the largest Jewish population outside Israel.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is standing by a statement that angered critics on both sides of the Israel debate. "I am the mayor of New York City and this is what I signed up for," he told reporters Thursday, the AP reported.
The statement came Wednesday, the third anniversary of Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. It began by noting Hamas' "horrific war crimes," the killing of about 1,200 people and the taking of more than 250 hostages. "We grieve alongside our many friends and neighbors who still carry that unthinkable loss," Mamdani wrote.
Then it turned to Gaza. "The suffering did not begin nor end that day," he wrote. "It instead continued through the Israeli government's devastating, ongoing genocide in Gaza." He cited more than 74,000 deaths counted by Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry.
The backlash was quick. Rep. Dan Goldman, a Jewish Democrat from New York, called it "reprehensible." Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey said Mamdani was blaming the victims, CBS News reported. Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt noted the statement never said "Jews." U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee called it "an outrageous & disgusting rant," the Washington Examiner reported.
That night, Mamdani went to a vigil in Union Square held by Israelis for Peace, a group of Israeli anti-occupation activists. He did not speak. Pro-Palestinian protesters booed and yelled, "Zohran, your hands are red!"
Asked Thursday if he would change his words, Mamdani said it is "critically important to be able to mourn for all of those who were killed and have been killed since." Rabbi Rick Jacobs of the Union for Reform Judaism said Mamdani had "doubled down."
Mamdani, the city's first Muslim mayor, took office in January. He has long criticized Israel's war in Gaza and says that is different from bigotry against Jews. Last month he announced a plan to fight antisemitism, including a hotline and money for synagogue security.
What we know: Mamdani says he will not change his statement.
What we don't: Whether the dispute hurts Democrats in New York races before Nov. 3.
Where outlets agree The Associated Press and the Washington Examiner both quote Mamdani's statement that "the suffering did not begin nor end that day" and its charge of an "ongoing genocide in Gaza."
Where they differ The outlets cited here report the same key facts so far.