Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic Party nominee for mayor of New York, says that he will direct the city to dump its Israel bonds, because — he claims — they implicate the city in “violations of international law.”
Mamdani, a democratic socialist and Muslim, has a long history of anti-Israel activism, among his other radical views.
The Jerusalem Post, citing a local CBS interview, reported Monday:
If elected mayor of New York, Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani intends to end the city’s investments in Israeli government bonds, he said Sunday.
…
“The most important thing is to understand where we are directly implicated within the city pension fund,” he said. “A pension fund that purchases Israeli bonds, in my view, is clearly an indication of a conflict with our values, and we know that our values are actually within the framework of international law.”
Mamdani did not cite which law Israel had violated (and would likely have been unable to do so).
The only known violations of international law have been by Hamas, which launched the war with its terror attack on Israel on October 7, 2023; and which is still holding hostages, and denying them Red Cross visits.
Mamdani has refused to condemn the radical phrase “globalize the intifada,” referring to a campaign of suicide bombing against Israel, though he has lately said that he would “discourage” people from using it.
New York stopped buying new Israel bonds in 2023, as part of a broader policy of avoiding sovereign debt.
Update:
Dani Naveh, President & CEO of Israel Bonds, added:
“While we don’t comment on the statements made by candidates, what I can say is this: Israel Bonds is proud of the unprecedented outpouring of support — more than $5.5 billion in investments since October 7 — including major commitments from local governments around the country, including the State of New York. The record-breaking investments we have seen in recent years demonstrate the confidence that Americans have in Israel’s strength and future.”
