The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen’s forceful rejection of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s false attacks on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Netanyahu attacked Mayor Mamdani after the Mayor called him “a war criminal and an architect of a horrific genocide of the Palestinian people.” Netanyahu, who is scheduled to address the United Nations General Assembly this week, responded by accusing Mamdani of supporting Hamas and threatening to “tell the truth” about him.
In a video statement, Senator Van Hollen said:
“He lies and lies and lies. Prime Minister Netanyahu’s lies about Mayor Mamdani don’t change the fact that Netanyahu is a wanted war criminal who has blocked justice for Americans killed on his watch. If there’s anyone who should be shamed and ashamed, it’s him. He’s lucky he was even allowed into our country.”
In a statement, CAIR Government Affairs Department Director Robert S. McCaw said:
“We thank Senator Chris Van Hollen for refusing to remain silent as Benjamin Netanyahu smears an American Muslim elected official to distract from his own record of genocide, war crimes and obstruction of justice.
“Mayor Mamdani was right to speak the truth about Netanyahu, and Senator Van Hollen was right to defend the Mayor. Netanyahu cannot erase the devastation in Gaza or escape accountability by falsely accusing every critic of supporting terrorism.
“For too long, our nation’s political leaders have treated Netanyahu as if he were above international law, above American law and beyond criticism. He is none of those things. He is a foreign leader wanted by the International Criminal Court who should be held accountable – not rewarded with a platform, weapons and political protection.
“We urge every member of Congress to follow Senator Van Hollen’s example by rejecting Netanyahu’s propaganda, demanding justice for Americans killed by Israeli forces and ending U.S. complicity in the Israeli government’s crimes against the Palestinian people.”
In November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and then-Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, alleging responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity, including the use of starvation as a method of warfare. Israel disputes the allegations, and the United States is not a party to the court.
CAIR has repeatedly called for an end to U.S. military assistance to the Israeli government and for American officials to pursue accountability for the killing of Palestinians, aid workers, journalists and American citizens.
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