New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's hosting of controversial anti-Israeli activist Mahmoud Khalil for an iftar represents a "deeply troubling endorsement," two Jewish New York policymakers told The Jerusalem Post.
Mamdani revealed on Monday that he and his wife Rama "had the great honor of hosting Mahmoud, Noor, and their son Dean at Gracie Mansion to break the fast together."
Khalil, a Syrian-born social activist and former master’s student at Columbia University, is known for his radical pro-Palestine activism. He previously said that Hamas's October 7 attacks on Israel were part of "a desperate attempt to tell the world that Palestinians are here, that Palestinians are part of the equation."
The Department of Homeland Security previously said, "Mahmoud Khalil refuses to condemn Hamas because he is a terrorist sympathizer, not because DHS ‘painted’ him as one. He ‘branded’ himself as an antisemite through his own hateful behavior and rhetoric."
Rabbi Moshe Davis, who served as the executive director of the Mayor's Office to Combat Antisemitism under Eric Adams, told The Post on Tuesday that "there are many great Muslim New Yorkers the Mayor could have chosen to share an Iftar meal with" but that the decision by the Mayor and Rama to instead welcome a "radical activist who has supported terrorism against Jews" into their home sends a "deeply troubling message about their values."
"We’ve already seen how anti-Israel activism at Columbia fostered an atmosphere of hostility and even violence toward Jewish students," he said. "The Jewish community now fears that Mayor Mamdani is seeking to spread that same agenda across New York City."
Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, member of the New York City Council for the 48th District, told the Post that having Mahmoud Khalil at dinner "is very symbolic because Mahmoud Khalil was the ringleader of chaos, intimidation, and harassment against Jewish students that took place at Columbia University."
She said Khalil's presence at Mamdani's house "sends a message to the Jewish community and to all New Yorkers that he approves of what Mahmoud Khalil was doing."
An endorsement?
"I feel like it can only be seen as an endorsement," she added. "You can defend free speech without inviting antisemites and pro-Hamas agitators to your dinner at Gracie Mansion."
Vernikov however, said it is not overly surprising that Mamdani invited a pro-Palestinian activist to his house, given his own track record in pro-Palestine activism (including at university, where he started a local chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine)
Vernikov believes Mamdani's personal pro-Palestine advocacy is the reason why he ran for office.
"He ran on the promise of affordability because he knew that it's a top issue for New Yorkers, and that they would be attracted to that message, and would come out and vote for him. But I believe his real agenda is his pro-Palestine advocacy."
While she said what he, as mayor, does and says and the photos he posts matter, "because the mayor of New York City is a very powerful figure," she does not believe that Mayor Mamdani will actually cause the negative impact "we were afraid he would."
"He made a lot of promises during his campaign, none of which he so far is able to actually have and make happen. There are many examples unrelated to antisemitism: free buses, taxing the rich, arresting Bibi Netanyahu - all these things he promises to do, he can't do."
However, Vernikov said Khalil's presence was not the only reason that photo was problematic and symbolic.
It came just a day after it came to light that Mamdani's wife, Rama Duwaji, liked several Instagram posts regarding the October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack on Israel.
One of the posts Duwaji reportedly liked featured images of Palestinians breaching Israeli defenses and described the attack as a form of resistance to “apartheid.”
Another showed people on a captured IDF vehicle with messaging about opposing occupation and oppression. Both posts were shared on the same day Hamas carried out its assault on Israel.
In response to the reporting, Mamdani defended his wife, saying: “My wife is the love of my life, and she’s also a private person who has held no formal position on my campaign or in my City Hall."
"The fact that instead of distancing from his wife, he's showing a picture of his wife, including her in the photos that he's posting for the public to see, I think is very symbolic and sends a message that he approves of what she did," Vernikov told the Post.
"The First Lady of NYC should understand that the safety of Jewish New Yorkers is compromised when she cheers the death of Jews in any place around the world," Rabbi Davis added.
The Post reached out to Mamdani's press office for comment, but no response was received by press time.