The controversy stems from a move by the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp. (BNYDC) declining to renew its lease with New York City drone manufacturer Easy Aerial, a company that provides drones to Israel\u2019s military,\u00a0New York Post reported.<\/a><\/p>\n The BNYDC is controlled by board members who serve at the pleasure of the mayor and the move comes just over a month after Mamdani was sworn in on New Year’s Day after being widely criticized on the mayoral campaign trail for anti-Israel statements and positions.\u00a0<\/p>\n “Easy Aerial is leaving the Brooklyn Navy Yard,” NYC Democratic Councilman Lincoln Restler\u00a0posted on X<\/a> Thursday. “@BklynNavyYard leadership made the right decision last month to not renew their lease. This public asset should not be leasing space to companies producing drones that are being transformed into weapons of war.”<\/p>\n MAMDANI\u2019S ANTISEMITISM CZAR ONCE SLAMMED POST CONDEMNING HAMAS TERROR ATTACKS<\/a><\/p>\n Zohran Mamdani, mayor of New York, during an announcement on junk fees in the Susan and John Hess Family Theater at The Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, on Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026.\u00a0 (Adam Gray\/Bloomberg via Getty Images)<\/p>\n Fox News Digital reached out to Mamdani\u2019s office for comment on his role, if any, in the decision.<\/p>\n Dating back to last year, anti-Israel protesters have been active at the Brooklyn Navy Yard calling for the eviction of two tenants, Crye Precision and Easy Aerial, who do business with Israel,\u00a0Brooklyn Paper reported.<\/a><\/p>\n In a statement to Fox News Digital, a BNYDC spokesperson said the decision was made in December and that Easy Aerial was notified in January.\u00a0<\/p>\n ISRAEL ACCUSES MAMDANI OF POURING ‘ANTISEMITIC GASOLINE’ AFTER HE REVOKES ADAMS EXECUTIVE ORDERS<\/a><\/p>\n Pro-Palestinian protesters try enter the Brooklyn Museum, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in Gaza, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, May 31, 2024.\u00a0 (Eduardo Munoz\/Reuters)<\/p>\n “BNYDC notified Easy Aerial at the beginning of the year that it would not renew its lease agreement for business reasons related to operational and campus compliance matters,” the spokesperson said. “Like any landlord, we evaluate renewals based on adherence to lease terms and campus policies. There were no other factors in our decision.”<\/p>\n Dating back to his college days,<\/a> when he founded his school\u2019s Students for Justice In Palestine chapter, Mamdani has supported the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel, an issue that came up many times on the campaign trail.\u00a0<\/p>\n In October,\u00a0a resurfaced video<\/a> from 2023 showed Mamdani\u00a0calling to “end New York state subsidy of settler crimes.”<\/p>\n![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1771466891_36_zohran-mamdani-tired.jpg\")
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