The New York Town Hall candidate Zohran Mamdani made criticism for “intifada” remarks

Zohran MamdaniA candidate for the Democratic primary for the elections of the New York town hall, this week attracted Jewish organizations and political leaders after seeing the slogan “globalized the intifada”.

In an interview with the rampart Posted on Tuesday, Mamdani was asked if the expression made him uncomfortable. In response, Mamdani said that the slogan had captured “a desperate desire for equality and equal rights to defend Palestinian human rights”. He said that the American Holocaust museum had used the word “intifada” in the Arabic language descriptions of the 1944 Warsaw uprising against Nazi Germany.

Mamdani, a progressive assembly of New York State who has strengthened the Israeli government forcefully, also addressed the ascent of anti-Semitism since the terrorist attack on October 7 and the war in Gaza, claiming that anti-Jewish prejudices were “a real problem in our city” and one that the next mayor should focus on “plating”. He added that he thought that the city’s community security offices should increase the financing of anti-hate crime measures.

In a post on x On Wednesday, the American Holocaust museum, based in Washington, strongly condemned Mamdani’s remarks: “exploit the museum and the uprising of the Warsaw ghetto to disinfect” Global The Intifada “is scandalous and above all offensive for survivors. Since 1987, the Jews have been attacked and murdered under his banner.

The American Holocaust museum did not immediately respond to a request for comments on how it had translated the uprising from Warsaw to Arabic.

Jonathan Greenblatt, Managing Director of the Anti-Diffamation League, Decree the sentence On X as an “explicit incentive to violence”. Representative Dan Goldman, DN.Y., who is Jewish, said in a statement that the term “intifada” is “understood as referring to violent terrorist attacks against innocent Israeli civilians who occurred during the first and second intifadas”.

“If Mr. Mamdani is not willing to take into account the request of large Jewish organizations to condemn this undoubtedly anti -Semitic sentence,” added Goldman, “then he is not able to direct a city with 1.3 million Jews – the largest Jewish population outside of Israel.”

Mamdani also faced criticism from some of the other candidates in the crowded democratic primary field – including the favorite, former governor Andrew Cuomo. The advantage of Cuomo survey has narrowed in recent weeks while Mamdani, a 33 -year -old democratic socialist, has gained momentum and caught up key approval Of the representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, DN.Y.

In a statement, Cuomo called all the pretenders of the race to “denounce” Mamdani’s comments and invoked recent violent attacks against the Jewish people nationally.

“At a time when we see anti -Semitism increasing and witnessing violence against the Jews leading to their death in Washington, DC or their burn in Denver – we know too well that the words count,” said Cuomo in part, referring to the killings of two Israeli embassy employees and a Attack on the defenders of Israeli hostages in Boulder. “They feed hatred. They feed the murder. “

The war in Gaza and the point of anti -Semitism benefited from the primary mayor of New York. Cuomo, 67, launches as a fierce defender of Israel and presents himself to Jewish residents and moderate ideological as the obvious choice of the race. Mamdani, who has characterized the conduct of Israel In Gaza as a “genocide”, gained partly ground thanks to the enthusiastic support of the city’s progressives.

Mamdani, addressing journalists at A press event in Harlem On Wednesday, the outcry on Wednesday about his interview with The Bulwark and the decline that followed, saying in part that “it hurts me to be called an anti -Semitic”.

“I said on every occasion that there was no room for anti -Semitism in this city, in this country. I said that because it is something that I personally believe,” said Mamdani.

He broke down by crying by describing the vitriol he received as he seeks to become the first Muslim mayor in New York.

“I receive messages that say:” The only good Muslim is a dead Muslim “. I receive threats to my life, on the people I love, ”said Mamdani, his eyes launching tears.

The Primary Democrat mayor of New York is June 24. scandal The outgoing mayor, Eric Adams, won the election as a democrat in 2021, but he does not participate in the party’s appointment competition. He is would have petitioned To run on two independent ballot boxes: “endanticism” and “safe and affordable”.