Dozens of people were arrested in New York City while protesting against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s participation in the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday.
Actors Susan Sarandon and Hannah Einbinder, as well as activist and whistleblower Chelsea Manning, were among the protesters arrested during a sit-in that blocked a main road leading to the UN.
Handcuffed and escorted by a New York Police Department (NYPD) officer, Einbinder was recorded in a video shared on social media saying, “Netanyahu out of New York, no bombs on Lebanon, no bombs on Iran, stop the genocide.”
Nerdeen Kiswani, founder of Within Our Lifetime, a Palestinian-led community organisation, criticised Mamdani’s video, saying it was “a far cry from campaigning on arresting Netanyahu. Instead of arresting Netanyahu, the NYPD arrested the protesters.
“This is the exact opposite of what Mamdani ran on,” she wrote.
Contrary to popular opinion, diplomatic immunity is anything but absolute. It does massively hinder investigations for full diplomats as all their communications etc. are protected. But in most countries they do not have immunity from the law except in matters that pertain to their diplomatic duties.