Netanyahu Plans 24-Hour UN Trip Amid Mamdani's Arrest Call, Israeli Envoy Says

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will make a 24-hour trip to New York later this month to address the UN General Assembly, according to Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon, who spoke Tuesday, September 8, 2026.

Danon said Netanyahu has no choice but to show up: "there is no option." New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani publicly called Netanyahu a "war criminal" and demanded his arrest, according to the Associated Press.

Mamdani had to walk back the arrest push. New York City does not have the authority to take Netanyahu into custody. Danon called it "doing politics." "You know, it became very trendy to do politics by blaming Israel," Danon told reporters. He stressed, "For us, it's important the prime minister will come."

The ICC Warrant, Explained

Mamdani's demand traces back to a warrant the International Criminal Court issued against Netanyahu in November 2024, accusing him and another Israeli official of crimes against humanity. The warrant said there was reason to believe Netanyahu used "starvation as a weapon of warfare" by restricting humanitarian aid into Gaza and intentionally targeting civilians, according to the AP.

That is an allegation from an arrest warrant, not a conviction. Israel denies the charges outright.

Netanyahu has become an increasingly polarizing figure over Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza. Mamdani's underlying concern deserves a fair hearing: the ICC is described by the AP as the world's top war crimes tribunal, and it found reason to issue a warrant against a sitting head of government over conduct in Gaza. Supporters of enforcing that warrant argue that if the U.S. or its allies simply ignore ICC warrants when it's politically inconvenient, the court's authority means nothing anywhere.

But the practical and legal reality cuts hard against Mamdani's demand. Neither the United States nor Israel is a member of the ICC. New York City does not have legal authority to execute an ICC arrest warrant. Mamdani has instead encouraged the federal government to act, but the Trump administration has moved the opposite direction, imposing a series of sanctions on ICC staffers as part of a campaign to dismantle the tribunal, according to the AP.

The Trip Itself

Danon laid out Netanyahu's itinerary: arrival in New York late on September 23, an address to the General Assembly the afternoon of September 24, then a flight home to Israel that same night. Fast in, fast out.

The timing isn't accidental. Danon noted the UN gathering of leaders from the 193 member nations falls during the Jewish holidays this year, while Netanyahu is also in the middle of an election campaign at home trying to hold onto his job as prime minister.

Danon expects trouble on the ground regardless of the legal reality. He said protests against Netanyahu would "create more chaos" on New York streets during the high-level UN meetings running the week of September 22-28.

He's got history on his side. Last year's UN General Assembly saw a mass walkout when Netanyahu took the podium. Danon is bracing for a repeat: "I expect that there will be something like another show." Still, he expressed confidence in Netanyahu's ability to push through it, saying the prime minister is experienced and "I'm sure he will deliver his speech despite those attempts."

Mamdani's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday, according to the AP.

What's Actually Unresolved

The legal fight over the ICC warrant isn't going anywhere fast. The U.S. and Israel are not members of the court, which is exactly why they can decline to act on its warrants, while New York City's lack of authority to detain a foreign head of government has nothing to do with that broader question.

The bigger open question is domestic: Netanyahu heads into this UN trip mid-campaign, with Israeli voters set to weigh his handling of the Gaza war and its aftermath at the ballot box. How this UN appearance, and any protests around it, plays with that electorate back home is something no source has yet reported on.