Scores of New Yorkers, including some families victimized by the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the World Trade Center, are asking New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to skip the annual memorial service at Ground Zero â a call he is not heeding.
Mamdani is set to attend the annual remembrance ceremony on Friday at Ground Zero, which is an invitation-only event attended by victims families, dignitaries and other invited guests. Hosted by the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, the event begins at 8:30 a.m. Vice President JD Vance and former presidents Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush are also expected to attend.
A petition launched by relatives of 9/11 victims, which has since garnered roughly 110,000 signatures, asks Mamdani to stay home on Friday, citing his appointment of Ramzi Kassem as the city’s chief legal counsel. Kassem previously represented Ahmed al-Darbi, an al Qaeda operative who pleaded guilty to war-crimes charges.
“For 9/11 families, this is not simply a public ceremonyâit is a deeply personal day of mourning. The presence of individuals whose words or associations are perceived as conflicting with the solemn purpose of the event risks detracting from that focus and causing additional pain,” the petition reads.
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“The 25th anniversary should remain centered on remembrance, unity, and an unambiguous rejection of the violence and extremism that defined that day. Ensuring that all participants reflect these principles is essential to preserving the integrity of the commemoration.”
The controversy intensified after Mamdani handed a ceremonial pen used to sign 9/11-related executive orders to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and asked her to pass it to Kassem. Critics on social media characterized the hand-off as a slap in the face to relatives of those who died in the attacks.
The mayor has defended his decision to attend the 9/11 memorial despite the criticisms levied against him.
“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 is on the families whose loved ones were stolen from them 25 years ago in the horrific act of terror of September 11th, and a focus also on the first responders who gave everything they could to this city and to the people who came together to try and help their fellow New Yorkers,” Mamdani said in response to the criticisms.
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Former New York Gov. George Pataki and one-time New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, both Republicans, have echoed calls for Mamdani to stay away from the ceremony.
“Having lost friends there and being very close to many of the families, it offends me that hes coming,” the former mayor said.
âIn addition to his appointment of Kassem, Mamdani has also caught flak from critics in the lead-up to Sept. 11 for his past failure to denounce the phrase “globalize the intifada,” his praise for an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, his endorsement of candidates who have made controversial statements about
