On the 3rd anniversary of October 7 attacks, Mamdani draws ire as he accuses Israel of genocide and war crimes

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New York’s mayor marked the third anniversary of Hamas’ October 7 attacks on Israel on Wednesday with a statement that has sparked backlash among some Jewish leaders.

In his statement, Mayor Zohran Mamdani acknowledged the “horrific war crimes of October 7” while also accusing Israel of committing war crimes and genocide in Gaza.

“This day is profoundly painful for so many New Yorkers. It marks three years since the horrific war crimes of October 7. On that day, Hamas killed more than 1,100 Israelis and abducted 251 others. We grieve alongside our many friends and neighbors who still carry that unthinkable loss,” Mamdani wrote in a statement.

“The suffering did not begin nor end that day,” the statement continued. “It instead continued through the Israeli government’s devastating, ongoing genocide in Gaza, in which it has killed more than 74,000 Palestinians—including more than 21,000 children. Even since the so-called ceasefire, more than 1,400 Palestinians have been killed. That suffering has intensified with every Israeli bomb dropped on ambulances waiting outside hospitals, every drone strike targeting a residential building or journalist, and every shipment of food aid turned away at a border crossing. Many New Yorkers are reckoning with this unbearable grief, and we mourn alongside them—all while knowing that our tax dollars fund these war crimes,” Mamdani wrote.

“Three years later, we must refuse to accept a world in which occupation and apartheid continue, where war crimes are met with impunity, and our federal government continues its complicity with every arms shipment. To honor the dead, we must fight for a world in which every person can live with freedom, safety, and dignity,” the statement finished.

Hamas-led gunmen stormed Israeli communities along the border with Gaza on October 7 , 2023, killing more than 1,200 people, including children, women and elderly people. The attackers also took 251 hostages.

The mayor, a prominent critic of Israel’s government, received immediate backlash from some Jewish leaders on social media for his statement.

Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, accused Mamdani of “weaponizing a day meant for mourning the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust to recycle your usual antizionist talking points,” in a post on X.

“The city with the largest Jewish population outside Israel deserves a mayor who can honor the dead without exploiting them,” he wrote. The Anti-Defamation League has launched a “Mamdani Monitor” to track the mayor’s administration.

The president and director of the Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation similarly referred to New York’s status as the city with the largest Jewish community outside Israel, saying “the Jewish people should be afforded this one day to mourn the murdered, the raped and the children left orphaned, without having their grief reframed as an indictment of Israel.”

“Palestinians have suffered enormously from the war Hamas unleashed, and their suffering deserves recognition,” Jack Simony wrote, adding Mamdani “should understand the weight of this day for the Jewish New Yorkers he represents.”

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee called Mamdani’s statement a “disgraceful moral failure.” Mamdani has denounced the organization for its spending in US elections.

Last month, the mayor announced the first-ever municipal strategy for New York City to combat antisemitism, including tens of millions of dollars in funding for hate crime prevention and Jewish cultural centers.

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Mamdani unveils strategy to combat antisemitism in New York City

Mamdani, who has faced accusations of antisemitism from some Jewish groups over his criticisms of Israel and his handling of protests outside synagogues, has attempted to make outreach to Jewish communities in the city a strong element of his administration.

During his campaign, he suggested as mayor he would seek to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under an International Criminal Court warrant for war crimes, even though the US is not a signatory to the ICC. The mayor acknowledged earlier this summer that he would not have the legal authority to do so.

The mayor is set to attend a vigil in remembrance of October 7 Wednesday night, followed by a meeting with Palestinian New Yorkers, according to his public schedule.

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纽约市长周三发表声明，纪念哈马斯10月7日袭击以色列三周年，该声明引发了一些犹太领导人的强烈反对。

市长佐赫兰·马姆达尼在声明中承认“10 月 7 日发生的可怕战争罪行”，同时指责以色列在加沙犯下战争罪和种族灭绝罪。

“对于许多纽约人来说，今天是无比痛苦的一天。今天是10月7日骇人听闻的战争罪行三周年纪念日。那天，哈马斯杀害了1100多名以色列人，并绑架了251人。我们与众多朋友和邻居一同哀悼，他们至今仍承受着那难以想象的损失，”马姆达尼在一份声明中写道。

声明继续说道：“苦难并非始于那一天，也非止于那一天。相反，它延续到了以色列政府在加沙地带持续不断的毁灭性种族灭绝中，这场种族灭绝已造成超过74,000名巴勒斯坦人丧生，其中包括超过21,000名儿童。即使在所谓的停火协议生效后，仍有超过1,400名巴勒斯坦人遇难。以色列向医院外等候的救护车投下的每一枚炸弹，每一次无人机袭击居民楼或记者，以及每一批在边境口岸被拒收的食品援助，都加剧了这种苦难。许多纽约市民正在承受着这种难以承受的悲痛，我们与他们一同哀悼——同时我们也清楚地知道，我们的税款正在资助这些战争罪行。”马姆达尼写道。

声明最后说道：“三年过去了，我们必须拒绝接受一个占领和种族隔离仍在继续、战争罪行逍遥法外、联邦政府继续与每一批武器运输沆瀣一气的世界。为了缅怀逝者，我们必须为每个人都能享有自由、安全和尊严的世界而奋斗。”

2023年10月7日，哈马斯领导的枪手袭击了以色列与加沙边境沿线的多个社区，造成1200多人死亡，其中包括儿童、妇女和老人。袭击者还劫持了251名人质。

这位市长是以色列政府的知名批评者，他的言论立即在社交媒体上遭到一些犹太领袖的强烈抨击。

反诽谤联盟首席执行官乔纳森·格林布拉特在 X 网站上发帖指责马姆达尼“利用本应哀悼自大屠杀以来最严重的犹太人屠杀的日子，来重复他惯常的反犹太复国主义论调”。

他写道：“以色列以外犹太人口最多的城市，理应拥有一位能够尊重逝者而非利用他们的市长。” 反诽谤联盟已启动“马姆达尼监督计划”，以追踪市长的执政情况。

奥斯维辛犹太中心基金会的主席兼主任也提到了纽约作为以色列以外拥有最大犹太社区的城市的地位，他说：“犹太人民应该有这一天来哀悼那些被谋杀、被强奸和成为孤儿的孩子们，而不应该让他们的悲痛被重新定义为对以色列的控诉。”

“巴勒斯坦人遭受了哈马斯发动的战争的巨大苦难，他们的苦难理应得到承认，”杰克·西蒙尼写道，并补充说，马姆达尼“应该理解这一天对于他所代表的纽约犹太人来说意义有多么重大”。

美国以色列公共事务委员会称马姆达尼的声明是“可耻的道德败坏”。马姆达尼曾谴责该组织在美国选举中花费资金。

上个月，市长宣布了纽约市首个打击反犹太主义的市政战略，其中包括数千万美元的资金用于预防仇恨犯罪和建设犹太文化中心。

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马姆达尼公布打击纽约市反犹主义的战略

马姆达尼曾因批评以色列以及处理犹太教堂外的抗议活动而受到一些犹太团体的反犹太主义指控，但他一直努力将与该市犹太社区的沟通作为其执政的重要组成部分。

在竞选期间，他曾表示，如果当选市长，他将根据国际刑事法院的逮捕令，以战争罪逮捕以色列总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡，尽管美国并非国际刑事法院的缔约国。今年夏天早些时候，这位市长承认他没有这样做的法律授权。

根据市长的公开日程安排，他将于周三晚参加纪念10月7日事件的守夜活动，随后会见巴勒斯坦裔纽约人。