TNA Staff
The New Arab / January 11, 2026
The demonstrators were protesting an event promoting American real estate investment in occupied Palestinian land.
New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani has come under fire after he denounced language used at a pro-Palestine demonstration, while not condemning the Jewish settlement event they were protesting.
Some of the protesters, who were decrying an event that was promoting American real estate investment in occupied Palestinian land, reportedly made pro-Hamas remarks. Hamas is proscribed as a terror group by the United States.
According to some reports, the chants included: “Say it loud, say it clear, we support Hamas here.”
The chant was quickly posted on social media by an Israeli journalist, causing it to circulate widely and grab the attention of many.
Mamdani went on to say in a post on X: “Chants in support of a terrorist organization have no place in our city. We will continue to ensure New Yorkers’ safety entering and exiting houses of worship as well as the constitutional right to protest.”
In a later statement, he said: “My team is in close touch with the N.Y.P.D. regarding last night’s protest and counterprotest”.
The protest was held in Kew Gardens Hills, an area home to a large number of Orthodox Jews. The event, held outside a synagogue in Manhattan, also attracted pro-Israel protesters, who hurled inflammatory remarks at those taking part in the pro-Palestine demonstration.
The comments from Mamdani have drawn widespread condemnation, with activists pointing out that the real estate sales being discussed were for land in occupied territories and land forcibly seized during the 1948 Nakba, when Zionist militias killed and expelled over 700,000 Palestinians to pave the way for the creation of Israel.
“Mamdani, you can easily ask attorney general Tish James to investigate, revoke the nonprofit statues and shut down these organisations that funnel money to settlements and facilitate illegal land sales. Why haven’t you publicly done so since taking office,” one person wrote in response on X.
Others challenged the US’s proscription of Palestinian armed groups, highlighting the right to resist foreign occupation in international law.
“Zohran, you’re wrong. Hamas is a Palestinian resistance org necessary because of Israel’s brutal genocide going back 75+ years. And, no one was made “unsafe” by people chanting and waving flags. You know all this. I’m afraid of what other selling out you’re prepared to do,” Jewish Rabbi David Mivasair wrote.
“Hey so the Palestinian people’s right to resistance is enshrined in international law. The armed struggle in Palestine isn’t based on an agenda of Palestinian ethnic supremacy but the defense of land and sovereignty. Pretty basic!,” another wrote.
Some accused Mamdani of capitalising and exploiting pro-Palestinian support amid Israel’s brutal war on Gaza – which has been determined to be a genocide by leading rights groups – while ignoring the plight of those facing land theft and settler attacks at the hands of Israelis.
Since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, there has been a vast expansion of Israeli settlements and the encroachment on Palestinian land.
Earlier this month, Israel made moves to start constructing a huge illegal settlement in the occupied West Bank, which it said was designed to “bury the idea of a Palestinian state”.
The Israel Land Authority in December announced the construction of the E1 project, which consists of 3,401 homes, which will effectively sever the north and south of the West Bank for Palestinians, and cuts off east Jerusalem even more.
The announcement was met with criticism from over 20 countries, including Israeli allies France, Canada, Italy, and Australia, who said the decision was an unacceptable violation of international law.
Settler attacks have also increased, with 2025’s olive harvest being recorded as the highest monthly number of Israeli attacks since the UN’s OCHA started documentation in 2006, with over 260 assaults.
More than 4,200 olive trees and saplings were vandalised or destroyed in 2025, the highest level of destruction in six years.
Israeli forces have also detained around 18,000 Palestinians in the West Bank since October 2023.
