New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called for New Yorkers detained by the Israeli military in the West Bank to be released.
Democratic House candidate for New York Brad Lander and a group of around 80 activists traveled to the West Bank during its olive harvest, during which they spoke with local Palestinians who had been attacked by Israeli settlers. During the harvest, they were detained by Israeli soldiers, prompting outrage from Democrats in the United States. Lander was quickly released, but those with him weren’t, leading to Mamdani’s call for their freedom.
“Harvesting olives is not illegal. The occupation is,” he said. “I am thankful that Brad has been released. But other New Yorkers remain detained, and they must be released immediately.”
“The same Israeli government detaining them has committed a horrific genocide against Palestinians, killing more than 74,000 people over the last few years alone,” Mamdani continued. “The detention of these New Yorkers must end. The occupation must end. The genocide must end.”
The outrage prompted a response from the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling the trip a “stunt” that was “nothing more than a calculated political provocation.”
“Lander traveled to a foreign country, deliberately entered a restricted security area, and participated in an unauthorized activity without the required coordination,” it said.
The ministry said Lander and the group had been explicitly informed beforehand that “proper coordination with the relevant authorities was required,” and that he ignored these instructions.
“At a time of heightened security tensions, Israeli security forces have a responsibility to protect lives, prevent dangerous incidents, and maintain public order,” the statement read. “Had anyone been injured as a result of his reckless political theater, Lander would undoubtedly have been among the first to demand that Israeli authorities intervene and provide protection.”
Lander and his group’s arrest appeared to occur under little duress, with no force being used and no one resisting. Lander was filmed upon learning of the detention, telling the camera that all non-Israeli citizens who were taking part in the olive harvest were told to board a bus that would take them to a police station. After boarding with no incident, keeping their phones and belongings, they were taken to a police station in the Israeli settlement of Beitar.
Rabbi Jill Jacobs, CEO of T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights, the group that led the trip, called the arrests an “outrageous abuse of power.”
“The Israeli government is actively advancing the forced displacement of Palestinian communities across the West Bank, using its military to deny Palestinians access to their land and intimidate those who stand alongside them. As rabbis, we have a moral obligation to confront these injustices, especially when they are carried out in our name,” she said in a statement.
“We will not be intimidated into silence. We will continue standing alongside Palestinian farmers and communities fighting to remain on their land, and we will not stop demanding an end to the occupation and the state-backed violence that sustains it,” Jacobs added.