By: Fern Sidman -Jewish Voice News

Israel’s political establishment, spanning both the governing coalition and the parliamentary opposition, reacted with sharp alarm and dismay following Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the New York City mayoral election, warning that his anti-Israel record and rhetoric represent a dangerous turn for one of the largest Jewish population centers outside the State of Israel.

According to a report that appeared on Wednesday in The Jerusalem Post, Israeli officials voiced profound concern that the election of the 34-year-old democratic socialist—a figure who has repeatedly described Israel’s counterterror operations in Gaza as “genocidal” and refused to condemn slogans such as “globalize the intifada”—signals not only a worrying shift in American political culture but also a potential escalation in antisemitism within New York’s civic and social institutions.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel, one of the first senior officials to comment, told The Jerusalem Post that Mamdani’s ascension to City Hall was “deeply concerning given his history of anti-Israel and anti-Jewish rhetoric.”

“New York’s Jewish community deserves leaders who protect them, not target them,” Haskel said pointedly. “Israel stands with our brothers and sisters in New York and will continue working with community leaders to ensure their safety and dignity.”

Her remarks echoed the growing apprehension expressed by Israeli diplomats and Jewish leaders worldwide, who fear that Mamdani’s alignment with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)—a group notorious for endorsing the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel—could embolden anti-Israel activism in cultural, educational, and governmental spaces across the United States.

As The Jerusalem Post report observed, Haskel’s statement was both diplomatic and urgent: a reminder that Israel views the protection of diaspora Jewry as a national responsibility, particularly in times of rising antisemitic hostility.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, representing the right flank of Israel’s government, offered an even more scathing assessment. In comments published by The Jerusalem Post, Ben-Gvir condemned Mamdani’s victory as a “dark day for the Jewish people and for anyone who values truth and justice.”

“Mamdani’s election as mayor will be remembered forever in infamy as the day antisemitism triumphed over common sense,” Ben-Gvir declared. “He is a supporter of Hamas, a hater of Israel, and an avowed antisemite.”

The minister drew a direct link between Mamdani’s rhetoric and global efforts to delegitimize Israel’s defensive military actions, particularly those aimed at dismantling Hamas in Gaza. “Like the Jews of New York, I am worried by this change,” he added, “but I am confident in the righteousness of our course as a state in continuing the elimination of Hamas despite his false claims that we are committing ‘genocide in Gaza.’ We will continue to fight all our enemies with all our might and will not heed Israel’s haters.”

The Jerusalem Post report noted that Ben-Gvir’s comments reflect a deepening unease within Jerusalem’s political and security circles that the normalization of anti-Israel rhetoric in Western democracies is eroding international support for Israel’s fight against terrorism.

Former Defense Minister and Yisrael Beytenu party leader Avigdor Liberman issued one of the most striking condemnations, declaring that “the big apple has fallen.” In an interview with The Jerusalem Post, Liberman lamented that “just three decades after the 9/11 attacks, New York has chosen as its mayor a racist, populist, and openly Shiite Islamist. Mamdani is the poster boy of the ‘silent jihad.’”

“A man who supported Hamas, attacked Israel, and blamed the West for all the world’s troubles has been elected mayor of New York City,” he said, calling the election “a resounding wake-up call to the Jews of New York.”

Liberman urged Jewish New Yorkers to consider aliyah, immigration to Israel, as a moral and practical response. “The Jews of New York must understand that their safety, identity, and future lie not in a city now led by an enemy of Israel, but in their homeland — the State of Israel. That is their home.”

As The Jerusalem Post reported, Liberman’s call resonated with nationalist circles in Israel, where the election is being interpreted not merely as a municipal political event but as a symbol of a broader Western retreat from moral clarity regarding antisemitism and terrorism.

On the opposite end of Israel’s political spectrum, MK Gilad Kariv of the Labor Party struck a more measured tone while acknowledging the gravity of the moment. Kariv, who chairs the Knesset’s Committee for Immigration, Absorption, and Diaspora Affairs, told The Jerusalem Post that while Mamdani’s win was “disturbing,” Israel must remain focused on supporting New York’s Jewish community rather than succumbing to despair.

“The Jewish community in New York is strong, diverse, and rich in wisdom and talent,” Kariv said. “I have no doubt that its leaders, organizations, and institutions will know how to navigate the new reality.”

He emphasized that Israel should “stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Jewish New Yorkers in defending their interests and combating antisemitism,” while also continuing to nurture bipartisan relationships in the United States.

“Even when challenges and obstacles arise,” Kariv noted, “Israel must maintain and strengthen its relationship with both American parties. We must firmly oppose any attempt to delegitimize the Jewish people’s right to a national home and to self-determination.”

The Jerusalem Post report characterized Kariv’s comments as an appeal to balance vigilance with diplomacy — a recognition that alienating American progressives could exacerbate polarization within the U.S.-Israel relationship.

Meanwhile, MK Ohad Tal of the Religious Zionist Party, who chairs the Knesset Israel-U.S. Relations Caucus, described Mamdani’s victory in bleak ideological terms.

“New York City has chosen an Islamist, antisemitic, and communist leader,” Tal said in remarks to The Jerusalem Post. “The progressive woke forces have won.”

Tal warned that the election outcome illustrates how “the moral decay of the progressive left has reached new heights — where hating Israel and excusing terrorism are now badges of virtue.”

“The Jews of America should know that the State of Israel will always stand by them and that its gates are open,” he added. “At a time when antisemitism is rising globally, Israel remains the only true refuge for the Jewish people.”

In a stark contrast to the outrage expressed by Jewish and Zionist lawmakers, members of the Hadash–Ta’al faction, representing Israel’s secular Arab political bloc, celebrated Mamdani’s victory.

According to the report in The Jerusalem Post, MK Ofer Cassif, one of the Knesset’s most outspoken critics of Israeli policy toward the Palestinians, called the election “a day of great hope for everyone in the world, not only in New York.”

Cassif’s remarks, which framed Mamdani’s win as a triumph of “justice and international solidarity,” were met with anger across much of the Israeli political spectrum. Critics accused Cassif and his allies of glorifying a politician whose rhetoric has directly endangered Jewish safety abroad.

As The Jerusalem Post report highlighted, the reactions from across Israel’s political landscape underscore a growing perception that the Jewish diaspora — particularly in the United States — faces a precarious moment.

For Israeli leaders, Mamdani’s victory represents more than a local upset. It is viewed as the culmination of a broader ideological drift in American politics, where progressive movements have increasingly embraced narratives that vilify Israel and excuse antisemitic discourse under the guise of social justice.

The Jerusalem Post report noted that Mamdani’s repeated refusal to condemn violence perpetrated against Israelis, his support for the BDS movement, and his alliances with organizations accused of legitimizing terrorism have raised serious questions about how his administration will approach Jewish communal life in New York — home to nearly two million Jews.

“The worry in Jerusalem is not only about rhetoric,” the paper wrote, “but about the possibility that policies shaped by anti-Zionist ideology could translate into institutional hostility toward Jewish education, security funding, or cultural expression.”

Despite their ideological differences, Israeli leaders remain united on one front: the pledge to safeguard Jewish communities worldwide. From Haskel’s assurances of support to Ben-Gvir’s fiery defiance and Kariv’s calls for diplomatic resilience, the consensus is clear — Israel will not stand idly by if antisemitism flourishes under Mamdani’s administration.

“The Jews of New York will not be alone,” Deputy Foreign Minister Haskel reaffirmed to The Jerusalem Post. “Israel will continue to defend their dignity and security as if they were within our own borders.”

In the words of Avigdor Liberman, quoted in The Jerusalem Post report, “History has shown us that when hatred is tolerated in politics, it soon spreads through society. New York’s election is a warning to the free world — and Israel must heed it.”

As Mamdani prepares to take office, the reverberations of his victory continue to echo far beyond New York’s five boroughs. For Israelis — and for Jews worldwide — the election represents not only a political milestone but a moral test: whether the city that once embodied Jewish opportunity and pluralism can still be counted as a safe haven in an era of rising intolerance.

The Jerusalem Post report noted that “the story of Mamdani’s New York is not yet written — but for many in Jerusalem, it has already begun as a warning chapter in the global struggle against antisemitism and the distortion of moral truth.”