Mayor Eric Adams met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday as part of his taxpayer-funded multi-day trip to the Holy Land — as he took a veiled swipe at his successor Zohran Mamdani’s incoming tenure.
In what could be his final foreign trip as mayor, Adams said he met with Netanyahu to reaffirm New York City’s ties with Jerusalem, with the Big Apple housing the largest Jewish population in the world outside of Israel.
“Just met with Prime Minister @netanyahu where we discussed the fight against antisemitism and the unbreakable bond between New York City and Israel,” Adams wrote on X.
“We stand strong, proud, and united against antisemitism and all other forms of hate,” he said.
Adams, who left for Israel on Friday, emphasized the connection with Israel was important — a tie he feared could be undone under the incoming mayor Mamdani, who has been a vocal critic of Israel and vowed to arrest Netanyahu if the PM sets foot in the Big Apple.
The mayor also delivered a message to Jewish New Yorkers, saying he didn’t want to “sugarcoat” the rise of antisemitism in the city and around the world since the war in Gaza began.
“I think this is a period where they [Jews in New York City] need to be very conscious that there’s a level of global hostility towards the Jewish community,” Adams said in an event on Sunday, referencing rising rates of antisemitism.
“If I was a Jewish New Yorker with children, I would be concerned right now,” he said, according to the Forward.
By the end of 2024, antisemitic incidents marked 54% of all hate crime reports in the Big Apple, with 345 anti-Jewish incidents logged, according to the NYPD.
“I’m not going to lie. I’m not going to pretend as though everything is fine,” Adams told the Forward in an interview Monday.
“Those who want to interpret my candid view of what’s playing out now in our city and across the globe, they can do so.”
Adams went on to meet with the Israeli leader in Tel Aviv, with Netanyahu thanking Adams “for his great support for Israel and on being a true friend of the Jewish people,” according to the prime minister’s office.
The friendship between the leaders of New York City and Israel stands in great contrast with the relationship between Mamdani and Netanyahu.
Mamdani has repeatedly said he’s order the NYPD to arrest Netanyahu if the prime minister comes to the city, complying with the warrant put out by the International Criminal Court over his alleged crimes against humanity, which the US does not recognize.
The socialist mayor-elect has also rejected calls for him to visit Israel, a decades-long tradition by New York City mayors as a show of support for the Jewish community.
Netanyahu has mocked Mamdani’s threat as “silly,” and has repeatedly stated that he is not afraid to travel to New York City.
Along with the political visits, Adams tour of Israel included a stop at the Western wall and meeting with former Hamas hostages.
During that meeting, Adams invited former captives Adams, Sagi Dekel-Chen and Yarden Bibas to visit the Big Apple and watch the ball drop in Times Square during the city’s big New Year’s Eve celebration.
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