New York, New York - New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani is in talks over whether to try to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during an upcoming UN summit, he said in an interview published Saturday – prompting a sharp rebuke from Netanyahu's camp.

"I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague," Mamdani told The New York Times. "He's a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court."

The leftist Mamdani, who has called Israel an "apartheid regime," added: "That is an opinion that is held by many, purely because of what his actions have wrought over these last many years."

Mamdani admitted he was not sure if he has the power to order the New York Police Department to detain a foreign leader but is discussing the matter with the city's legal team.

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"Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that's what we will do," he said.

The UN General Assembly, a major gathering of world leaders, takes place in September at UN headquarters in New York.

Mamdani in the past has vowed to send the NYPD to enforce arrest warrants against leaders wanted by the International Criminal Court, including Netanyahu or Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Hague-based ICC said in 2024 that it had reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu was responsible for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity related to Israel's offensive in Gaza following the unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.

Netanyahu has baselessly accused Mamdani of supporting Hamas, claiming on a recent New York radio show: "I think, secretly, he hates America."