New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani began his term by voiding all of his predecessor’s executive orders signed after his September 2024 indictment, including several pro-Israel ones.
In his opening moves as mayor, Mamdani signed executive orders dealing with housing and one repealing all of former Mayor Eric Adams’s executive orders signed after his indictment on corruption charges in September 2024. Among the executive orders revoked was one signed last month banning businesses from taking part in the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement regarding Israel. Another, signed in June 2025, adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism, which lumped criticism of Israel in with antisemitism more generally.
The move quickly drove backlash from Adams, Jewish groups, and even Israel itself, which condemned Mamdani’s maneuver.
“On his very first day as @NYCMayor, Mamdani shows his true face: He scraps the IHRA definition of antisemitism and lifts restrictions on boycotting Israel,” Israel’s foreign ministry said in a post on X. “This isn’t leadership. It’s antisemitic gasoline on an open fire.”
The definition in question was formulated by the IHRA. The basic definition that was adopted is: “Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”
However, the definition also includes certain criticisms of Israel as antisemitism, giving six bullet points, such as characterizing the Jewish state as a racist endeavor, comparing its actions to the Nazis, and “applying double standards” as being antisemitic.
Another action taken by Mamdani that invited criticism from the Jewish community was his scrubbing of some posts related to antisemitism on the official New York Mayor X account, which he took over from Adams shortly after midnight on Thursday. The posts outlined some of Adams’s efforts to combat antisemitism.
The National Jewish Advocacy Center sent a letter of protest to Mamdani over the two moves, demanding clarification and moves to protect Jewish New Yorkers.
“Your first days in office will define your administration,” the letter reads. “This is not how that definition should begin.”
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In his own X post on the matter, Adams criticized Mamdani, saying he “promised a New Era and unity today. This isn’t new. And it isn’t unity.”
The issue of Israel and antisemitism became a major flash point during the 2025 mayoral race, with Mamdani’s rivals, Adams and former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, attempting to center the race on the matter. Mamdani’s disapproval of Israel drew considerable criticism, but it failed to have a significant impact, as evidenced by his landslide victory in November.