Zohran Mamdani, the mayor of New York City, skipped Sunday's Israel Day Parade, becoming the first city mayor in decades to absent himself from the annual march.

The New York parade has been held every year since the 1960s. With New York being home to the largest urban Jewish population outside of Israel, the event was regularly attended by previous mayors and other political leaders eager to win over Israel sympathizers celebrating the 1948 birth of the Jewish state.

America's most populated city is currently home to around 1 million Jewish residents.

This year, too, thousands of people rallied through the streets of Manhattan at noon, waving Israeli flags and blue and white balloons. Some of the participants were wearing shirts with the slogan "I love Israel."

Mamdani outspoken critic of Israel

However, the mayor was not among the revelers. "I said on the campaign trail that I wouldn't be attending the parade, and I've made my views on the Israeli government abundantly clear," Mamdani said at a news conference Thursday.

New York's first Muslim mayor is known for his pro-Palestinian stance. He has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and of systematically violating the rights of Palestinians. The Israeli government rejects the accusations.

Two weeks ago, Mamdani's office released a video commemorating the Nakba. The Arabic word "nakba" means "catastrophe" and refers to the displacement of an estimated 700,000 Palestinians during the Arab-Israeli War that followed Israel's establishment in 1948.

However, the mayor also condemned Hamas's October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel, calling them "a horrific war crime," and stressed his commitment to equal rights for Israelis and Palestinians.

Mayor pledges big police presence

Even though Mamdani boycotted the parade, he also promised a robust police presence to make sure it went off "seamlessly and peacefully."

The parade was  attended by the city's police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, who is Jewish.

On Thursday, she stood alongside Mamdani at police headquarters and said, "It is the mayor's decision not to march, and it is my decision to march proudly."

Criticism from Israeli politicians

Mamdani's decision to skip the parade was met with criticism from current and former Israeli officials.

Israel's ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, accused the mayor of turning "his back on tens of thousands of Jews and supporters of Israel" by not joining the march.

Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett slammed the boycott as "cowardly." saying that Mamdani's absence "sends a message."

"To him, I would say: leadership means showing up for all New Yorkers, including the Jews who call this city home," Bennett wrote on X.

Support for Israel among Americans has significantly eroded in recent years amid the outcry over Israeli military action in Gaza.

Edited by: Darko Janjevic

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