Israel’s Consul General in New York, Ofir Akunis, has invited New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to watch a film documenting the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.
Akunis extended the invitation in a speech Tuesday, saying Mamdani would see “for the first time, what the people he supports really did” if he attended the screening on the third anniversary of the attack.
“My friends, in less than 48 hours, we will honor October 7, the exact day of the brutal massacre against our people,” Akunis said. “We will screen here in New York City the 47-minute horror movie that was produced by the IDF.”
Akunis said he had sent Mamdani an official invitation and urged the mayor to attend.
“Maybe, maybe, if he will come, he will stop spreading his hate and blood libels against the State of Israel,” Akunis said.
In the letter to Mamdani, Akunis said the film uses footage captured by Hamas terrorists on GoPro cameras during the attack.
“Perhaps after watching this film, you will truly understand why the Jewish State is so important and why we will continue to defend ourselves,” Akunis wrote. “I hope you will come with an open heart.”
City Hall did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Washington Examiner.
The invitation does not mark the first time Mamdani and Akunis have publicly sparred.
After Mamdani rescinded several orders issued by his predecessor, including the city’s adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, Akunis warned that the move “places the city’s Jewish communities in immediate danger.”
Akunis called Mamdani “a true hater of the State of Israel” after the mayor declined to participate in New York City’s Israel parade in May.
Akunis has also compared Mamdani’s support for the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement against Israel to tactics used by Nazi Germany and accused the mayor of bearing responsibility for attacks against Jews and Jewish institutions in New York.
The invitation also comes as several left-wing groups have promoted an anti-Zionist “resistance” rally outside City Hall on Oct. 7.
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The New York City chapter of the Young Democratic Socialists of America and the Democratic Socialists of America have criticized Mamdani as a “betrayal” for his approach to Israel and Gaza. Posts announcing the demonstrations appear to have been deleted, and details about the planned protests remain unclear.
The Oct. 7, 2023, attack killed about 1,200 people in Israel and saw Hamas-led terrorists abduct roughly 250 people and take them to Gaza.
