NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani to Attend 9/11 Memorial Amid Petition from Victims' Families
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Mayor Zohran Mamdani plans to attend the 25th-anniversary 9/11 remembrance ceremony at Ground Zero despite a petition signed by roughly 110,000 relatives of victims urging him to stay away over his appointment of former al-Qaeda defense lawyer Ramzi Kassem.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani will attend the annual 9/11 remembrance ceremony at Ground Zero on Friday, an invitation-only event organized by the 9/11 Memorial & Museum that also expects former presidents and the vice president. A petition circulated by families of 9/11 victims, which has gathered about 110,000 signatures, asks the mayor to skip the service, citing his selection of Ramzi Kassem as the city’s chief legal counsel. Kassem previously defended Ahmed al-Darbi, an al-Qaeda operative convicted of war-crimes.
The petition argues that the presence of individuals linked to the attacks could distract from the day’s purpose of mourning and unity. Critics also pointed to a recent incident in which Mamdani handed a ceremonial pen, used for signing 9/11-related executive orders, to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch for delivery to Kassem, describing the gesture as insensitive.
"I'm proud to be the mayor of this city. I love this city. I love this country. And what I want this week to be a focus on the families whose loved ones were stolen from them 25 years ago," Mamdani said, adding that he wants the focus to be on first responders.
Former New York Governor George Pataki and former mayor Rudy Giuliani, both Republicans, joined the petitioners in urging the mayor to stay away, with Giuliani saying the invitation "offends" him because of his personal connections to many families.
Mamdani has also faced criticism for past comments and associations, including a prior failure to denounce a controversial phrase, praise for a co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, and a link to streamer Hasan Piker, who made provocative statements about the United States. The mayor’s office did not respond to a request for comment.