Mamdani Condemns Hasan Piker For ‘Reprehensible’ 9/11 Comment In Heated Battle With Cuomo During Debate

New York City’s Thursday night mayoral debate turned nasty from the jump as Democratic Party nominee Zohran Mamdani and Independent candidate Andrew Cuomo traded jabs, while Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa fought for relevance.

The debate eventually hit on the criticism of Mamdani’s stance on the terrorist organization Hamas, which he repeatedly refused to say should disarm during a Fox News interview on Wednesday.

Cuomo attacked Mamdani, saying, “The assemblyman will not denounce Hamas. The assemblyman will not renounce Hasan Piker, who said America deserved 9/11. The assemblyman just said in his response, ‘Well, it depends on occupation.'” He added:

That is code, meaning that Israel does not have a right to exist as a Jewish state, which he has never acknowledged. That is “from the river to the sea.” That’s why he won’t denounce “globalize the intifada,” which means kill all Jews.

“Let’s give Mr. Mamdani a chance to respond to that,” added the moderator.

Mamdani replied, “I want to be very clear: the occupation is a reference to international law and the violation of it, which Mr. Cuomo has no regard for since he signed up to be Benjamin Netanyahu’s legal defense team during the course of this genocide.” He added:

And I find the comments that Hasan made on 9/11 to be objectionable and reprehensible. And I also think that part of the reason why Democrats are in the situation that we are in, of being a permanent minority in this country, is we are looking only to speak to journalists and streamers and Americans with whom we agree on every single thing that they say. We need to take the case to every person, and I’m happy to do that, which is why I was on Fox News yesterday talking about how I wish it was more like NASCAR so we could see all the billionaires who are sponsoring you right on your suit jacket.

The moderator then pressed Mamdani on the topic, “Mr. Mamdani, you told NBC’s Meet the Press that you don’t believe it’s the role of the mayor to police speech. Your words about this war have comforted many New Yorkers, but they’ve troubled others. And I want to ask about some of this.” She added:

There is your recent refusal, as we just discussed, to condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada,” which many view as a call to arms. In 2017, you rapped lyrics praising the Holy Land Five. These are men who were convicted of supporting terrorism. How would you assure New Yorkers, especially Jewish residents who might be concerned about this, that you would be a mayor for all? You have one minute to answer this.

“Thank you for this opportunity. When I am speaking about the responsibility of leading this city, I mean leading not just those who voted for me, leading not just those who vote, but leading every single person who calls the city home. And that includes Jewish New Yorkers. And I have been so thankful for the opportunity I’ve had to sit with so many Jewish New Yorkers over the course of the primary and through the general,” Mamdani replied, adding:

And it’s in those conversations that I learned that this phrase evokes many painful memories—memories of bus attacks in Haifa, restaurant attacks in Jerusalem. And I heard from a rabbi about their roommate who was killed on one of those buses.

And in hearing that and the distance between that impact and the rationale that some use of saying it, of speaking about the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, is why I said that I would discourage this language, language that I do not use. And what I’m looking to do as the first Muslim mayor of this city is to ensure that we bring every New Yorker together—Jewish New Yorkers, Muslim New Yorkers, every single person that calls this city home—that they understand they won’t just be protected, but they will belong.

“Mr. Sliwa, we will get to you first. I’m going to ask a question of Mr. Cuomo. While you are a strong supporter of Israel, you have also been slow to develop a relationship with the city’s Muslim community. You have called Mr. Mamdani a terrorist sympathizer. How do you assure those New Yorkers, especially Muslims and Arab New Yorkers, that you will be a mayor for all? You’ll have one minute,” asked another moderator.

“Well, first, I think the assemblyman created the perception himself. Why wouldn’t he condemn Hamas? Why wouldn’t he condemn Hasan Piker? Why did it take us here tonight for the first time for him to say it? He still won’t denounce ‘globalize the intifada,’ which means kill all Jews. Just say, ‘I denounce it.’ He won’t do it,” Cuomo replied as the moderator pushed him to answer the question:

I think you’ve made the point. But can you please answer about your own relationship with the Muslim community? You did not visit mosques for many years. More recently, you have been.

“I don’t think in any way the assemblyman is representative of the Muslim community, which is a vital community in New York City, and I am very fond of and have been working with. I think he’s playing his own politics. Many of his positions don’t even follow the Muslim faith, so I see them as two totally separate things,” Cuomo said, questioning Mamdani’s relationship to his faith.

Watch the clip above via WNBC-NY.