A fifth of Mamdani’s team “promotes terrorism and harasses Jews”

A scathing report published yesterday (Monday) by the Anti-Defamation League organization states that at least 20% of the members of the transition team of the elected mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani, are connected to extreme anti-Zionist organizations that work against Israel, some of which, according to the report, “openly promote terrorism and harass Jews.”

According to the report, out of about 400 people appointed to Mamdani’s 17 transition committees, about 80 have a documented history of anti-Zionist or anti-Israel statements or content sharing. Some of the names mentioned in the report were involved in the anti-Israel protests that spread in the last two years on New York campuses, and others were accused of downplaying the severity of the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.

The organization notes that some members of the team expressed positions supporting organizations such as “Students for Justice in Palestine” and other pro-Palestinian organizations, which the organization says were behind a series of stormy demonstrations against Israel in the city. According to the report, these groups “promote terrorism and harass Jews”.

Individual cases are also mentioned in the report. Among other things, it is claimed that Zakia Shakir-Ansari, a member of the Youth and Education Committee, was photographed during a protest camp at the city college standing in front of a sign with an upside-down red triangle – a symbol familiar from Hamas propaganda videos and adopted by anti-Semitic elements around the world – and next to it the inscription “Long live the struggle”.

Gianpaolo Bioki, a member of the Committee for Community Organization, was previously arrested at a protest camp at New York University where harsh statements against Israel were heard. Yosef Mobraz, a member of the Small Business Committee, called a video that dealt with rape and kidnappings carried out by Hamas terrorists on October 7 “propaganda”. Kazi Fuzia, a member of the Workers’ Justice Committee, wrote the day after the terrorist attack in which 1,200 Israelis were murdered that “resistance is justified when people are under occupation.”

In addition, the report found connections between some members of the transition team and the pro-Palestinian organization “Nation of Islam” and its leader Louis Farrakhan, who has been accused over the years of anti-Semitism. Among the names mentioned: Jacques Leander, a member of the Committee on Legal Affairs, as well as activists Tamika Mallory and Mason Leinen. According to the report, Leander attended the organization’s conference in 2022 where Farrakhan attacked Jews and spoke of their “power”.

The publication of the report comes less than a week after Mamdani’s director of appointments, Catherine Almonte da Costa, resigned from her position following the revelation of old posts on social networks that included anti-Semitic and offensive statements towards the police. The Anti-Defamation League claims that this case, along with the findings of the new report, raise serious questions about the screening and testing procedure for the transition team members.

“Many of the appointments are inconsistent with Mamdani’s campaign pledges to place the safety of the Jewish community in New York as a top priority,” the report said. It is also claimed that the composition of the committees will directly affect the municipality’s policy, and that there is a fear that the concerns of the Jewish community will not receive an adequate response.

Mamdani, who will take office on January 1, dismissed the criticism. According to him, he “always spoke against anti-Semitism and hatred of any kind.” At a press conference he said that he is committed to protecting the Jews of New York, but attacked the report on the grounds that it does not distinguish between anti-Semitism and criticism of the Israeli government. According to him, this lack of distinction diverts attention from what he defined as “the real crisis of anti-Semitism” in the city and in the United States as a whole.

Rabbi Mark Schneier, who heads the Foundation for Inter-Ethnic Understanding, said that the report’s findings did not surprise him. According to him, Mamdani creates a false distinction between anti-Semitism and criticism of Israel, especially in view of his positions regarding the very existence of Israel as a Jewish state.