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More than 700 rabbis and cantors from across the United States have signed a letter calling on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to apologize for remarks in which he described the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) as "monsters." The letter, published Friday, was organized by the Jewish Majority advocacy group, led by AIPAC veteran Jonathan Schulman, and urged Mamdani to "retract his remarks and affirm clearly that Jews and pro-Israel Americans are full participants in our democracy."

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The letter came after Mamdani, at a rally ahead of New York's Democratic primaries, told a crowd that "these monsters take many forms" and singled out AIPAC, saying the lobby feared "democracy being allowed to run its course" and those who seek "an end to genocide and Netanyahu's wars." The rally preceded a primary in which several congressional candidates backed by the mayor notched victories.

The letter, as reported by the Jerusalem Post, read that the signatories serve different communities, hold different political views, and do not speak with one voice on every question concerning Israel, American politics, or the war in Gaza. It said they were united in their belief that Mamdani's speech "about pro-Israel civic participation is dangerous, unacceptable, and beneath the office he holds."

In a subsequent interview with ABC's Jonathan Karl, Mamdani said he could not endorse states that privilege one religion over another, including Israel and Saudi Arabia. When Karl noted that Israel is a Jewish state, Mamdani said he consistently supports "the state of Israel as a state with equal rights," but added that any state that privileges one religion over another is one he cannot say he supports.

Al Jazeera reported that Mamdani has doubled down on his criticism, saying on Monday at City Hall that AIPAC has been supportive of a "status quo for immorality" in Palestine and the wider region. He also noted that more than 1,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed by Israeli forces since a US-brokered ceasefire was agreed last October.

The letter's signatories emphasized that criticizing Israeli policy is not antisemitic, but treating "millions of Zionist Jews as morally suspect, politically illegitimate, or less deserving of equal participation in public life" is. The Jerusalem Post reported that some Jewish leaders have criticized the remarks as antisemitic.

Key Claims

  • More than 700 rabbis and cantors signed a letter organized by the Jewish Majority advocacy group calling on Mayor Zohran Mamdani to apologize for remarks about AIPAC.
  • Mamdani described AIPAC as "monsters" at a rally.
  • AIPAC has spent heavily to support pro-Israel candidates in this year's congressional primaries in the US.
  • More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since a US-brokered ceasefire was agreed last October.
  • Mamdani's comments on AIPAC have been criticized by some Jewish leaders as antisemitic.
  • Mamdani said he could not endorse states that privilege one religion over another, including Israel and Saudi Arabia.
  • Israel's Declaration of Independence guaranteed full equality for all its citizens.

Perspectives

Mayor Zohran Mamdani

Mamdani defended his use of the term "monsters," explaining that he was speaking about an organization that has fought any attempt to deliver safety to people in Palestine and the region, and described the status quo AIPAC supports as "immorality." He reiterated his support for equal rights for all people and said he could not endorse any state that privileges one religion over another.

Jewish Majority Advocacy Group and Signatories

In their letter, the rabbis and cantors called Mamdani's speech "dangerous, unacceptable, and beneath the office he holds," and urged him to retract his remarks. They stated that no elected leader should demonize Jews or those who stand with the Jewish state, while affirming that criticizing Israeli policy is not antisemitic.

Israeli Officials

Ambassador Ofir Akunis, Consul General of Israel in New York, said in a statement that Mamdani's remarks were part of a pattern of "inciting and spreading hatred," and noted that Israel's Declaration of Independence guaranteed full equality for all its citizens.