Ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo launched a barrage of assaults on Zohran Mamdani about his stance on Israel and Gaza, slamming the Democratic nominee for refusing to denounce the terror group Hamas and the phrase “Globalize the intifada.”
“The Assemblyman will not denounce Hamas,” Cuomo, who is running as an independent, said during the first general mayoral election debate Thursday night.
Cuomo pointed to Mamdani’s refusal of denouncing Hamas. NBC
“The assemblyman will not denounce his Hasan Piker, who said America deserved 9/11,” he continued.
“The assemblyman just said in his response, ‘Well, it depends on occupation,’” Cuomo said, referring to Mamdani’s response to the cease-fire deal brokered by the Trump administration.
NYC Mayoral Debate live analysis
“That is cold, meaning that the Israel does not have a right to exist as a Jewish state, which he has never acknowledged. That is, from the river to the sea. That’s why he won’t denounce globalize the intifada, which means to kill all Jews,” Cuomo seethed.
Mamdani, a socialist state assemblyman from Queens and the front-runner in the race, has taken blows over his belated response to the landmark peace deal announced earlier this week.
Andrew Cuomo, Curtis Sliwa and Zohran Mamdani participate in a mayoral debate, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025, in New York. AP
The anti-Israel critic called for an end to “occupation and apartheid” in his statement while the living Israeli hostages were returned after two years in Hamas captivity.
He also refused to say that the terrorist group should lay down its weapons during a Fox News interview Wednesday.
Follow The Post’s live coverage of the 2025 NYC Mayoral Debate
The debate at 30 Rockefeller Center, aired by WNBC, is the first of two general election showdowns.
It marks the first time Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa appeared on stage to debate alongside Mamdani and Cuomo, who faced-off in the June Democratic primary.
The candidates will square off again next Wednesday on NY1.