Mayor Adams, In Israel, Warns Of Growing Antisemitism, Says He Will Move There Upon Retirement

While visiting Israel, outgoing New York City Mayor Eric Adams delivered a blunt warning about the rise of antisemitism in America and cast doubt on whether incoming mayor Zohran Mamdani is prepared to keep the city safe. Adams reiterated his unwavering support for Israel throughout the trip.

Adams was speaking at a reception hosted by the Combat Antisemitism Movement, honoring his strong backing of Israel. The visit also includes meetings with former hostages and participation in the American Jewish Congress’ 34th International Mayors Conference. A staunch pro-Israel Republican, Adams last came to Israel in the summer of 2023.

Addressing a crowd of about 300, many of them U.S. expats, Adams didn’t mince words. “If I were a Jewish New Yorker, I’d be concerned about my children,” he said. He pointed directly at anti-Israel activism: “You have to be clear: the ‘free Palestine’ movement was never about land. It was about the destruction and eradication of Jewish people.” Adams added, “When you hear people say, ‘We just want to destroy Israel’ – who lives in Israel? Jews, duh!” drawing laughter from the audience.

He warned that anti-Israel voices have worked hard to influence young Americans. “We’re raising a generation of those who are hating Israel because of false information,” Adams said. “If we don’t, it is now cool and hip to be antisemitic.”

Adams said anti-Israel activists “professionalized the battle,” targeting campuses first and then schools. “Now it’s time for our great minds to get into a room and come up with a well-executed business plan of making sure we stop this antisemitism across the globe.”

The conversation later turned to Mamdani, who takes office January 1. Adams said key progress could be reversed. “A lot of the work that we’ve started on many areas – but particularly in healing and bringing our city together – I think we’re going to lose some ground on that, and that sort of troubles me.”

Adams stressed that leadership is more than policies — it’s also about messaging. He criticized Mamdani’s past social media behavior and his hesitation to reject extremist slogans. “You cannot be slow in defining that you do not embrace ‘globalize the intifada,'” Adams said.

He continued: “I think he has to have the level of political maturity to understand that governing is not protesting.”

Adams further accused social media platforms of skewing the election. “I think many of our social media giants had a significant role to push out [Mamdani’s] algorithm,” he said, adding, “I think we’re going to find that there’s money that potentially came from different directions.”

He said Mamdani was backed by “a volunteer army,” built from pro-Palestine activism and fueled by economic frustration. “Mayors don’t control that,” Adams noted. “But if you go around and just get these false promises, now you’ve got another group of people for your base.”

When asked about foreign influence and extremist ideology, Adams was again direct. He said Mamdani’s refusal to denounce “globalize the intifada” was dangerous: “This means kill Jews everywhere. It’s no different than if someone was to say, ‘globalize killing African Americans,’ or ‘globalize Apartheid.'”

Pressed for reassurance, Adams offered none. “Typically, I would say, listen, there’s nothing to worry about, everything’s going to be fine. That is not true,” he told the crowd. He urged Jews in New York to stay alert, train their institutions, and not assume safety.

As for his future, Adams said he plans to stay involved — including in Israel. “I want to start speaking to the real estate agents here, so I can find my place in Israel when I retire,” he said, to cheers and applause.