Mamdani Sidesteps Questions on ADL Report Detailing Transition Team’s Support for Hamas

At least 20 percent of New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s administrative appointees have links to anti-Zionist and antisemitic activist organizations in the United States, including Students for Justice in Palestine, which supports Hamas, according to a report released Monday by the Anti-Defamation League.

The ADL said the findings were based on a review of more than 400 individuals selected for roles in Mamdani’s administration.

During a Monday press conference, Mamdani was asked whether statements cited in the ADL report, including support for Hamas and Oct. 7, and the description of “Zionists” as worse than Nazis, would disqualify any appointees. He refused to give a direct answer, saying, “I have always spoken out against antisemitism and hatred in any form and have made it clear that the commitment that I have made to protect New Yorkers, to protect Jewish New Yorkers, is one that I will uphold.”

Pressed again, Mamdani once again dodged the question. “We must distinguish between antisemitism and criticism of the Israeli government and the ADL’s report oftentimes ignores this distinction, and in doing so, it draws attention away from the very real crisis of antisemitism,” without addressing support for Hamas or terrorism highlighted in the report.

The ADL report follows recent media revelations that led to the resignation of Catherine Almonte Da Costa from a senior role on Mamdani’s transition team after she referred to “money hungry Jews” and made other antisemitic remarks. In the wake of the exposure, Mamdani pledged to strengthen vetting procedures for appointees, though he did not provide details.

According to the ADL, multiple appointees have connections to other anti-Zionist organizations, including Students for Justice in Palestine and Within Our Lifetime, both of which laud Hamas.

The report says two appointees publicly voiced support for Palestinian “resistance” against Israel, including one who wrote that such resistance was “justified” one day after the October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist invasion and massacre.

At least four appointees were found to have ties to Louis Farrakhan, the unabashedly antisemitic leader of the Nation of Islam, including by posting messages supportive of him online.

The ADL also identified at least a dozen appointees who expressed support for anti-Israel encampments on college campuses, with at least five having taken part in those protests directly.

One appointee selected for the Committee on Youth and Education reportedly joined a CUNY encampment and shared images of herself standing in front of a banner displaying an inverted red triangle, a Hamas symbol, along with the words “Long live the resistance.”

The report further states that at least 20 percent of appointees shared anti-Zionist or anti-Israel rhetoric online. Examples include a Committee on Legal Affairs nominee who wrote that “Zionism is racism,” and a Committee on Criminal Legal System appointee linked to a statement describing Zionism as a “genocidal ideology.”

At the same time, the ADL emphasized that many appointees raised no concerns, noting that at least 25 members of Mamdani’s transition team have prior relationships with the ADL or a record of support for the Jewish community.

The organization has launched a “Mamdani Monitor” initiative to track the mayor-elect’s actions, drawing criticism from Mamdani and backlash from progressive activists.