New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani doubled down on his criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling him a war criminal while acknowledging he does not have the power to arrest him as he previously threatened to do during the mayoral campaign.

Axar.az reports that Mamdani made the remarks to CNN’s Christiane Amanpour on Monday.

“When it comes to Benjamin Netanyahu, I have described him as I believe him to be — a war criminal and an architect of a horrific genocide of the Palestinian people,” he said.

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders in 2024, accusing them of war crimes during and after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel — allegations that Israel has denied.

During his campaign for mayor, Mamdani said he would direct the New York Police Department to arrest Netanyahu if he traveled to the city. Mamdani, who is an ardent critic of the Israeli government, has since backed away from that pledge, saying he doesn’t have the legal authority to enforce the ICC’s arrest warrant.

“I do believe that that is something that should be honored, because what we want to see, and we’ve been talking about this today, is a faith in our politics, a faith in accountability,” he said.

As New York City prepares to host the United Nations General Assembly this week, Mamdani said he met with Mayor Jan van Zanen of The Hague, adding the two discussed the importance of the rule of law.

“If the International Criminal Court deems someone worthy of an arrest because of a violation of those laws, then who are we to say that anyone should be above that? And I think very clearly that everyone should be held accountable to it,” Mamdani added.