Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani, who is said to support state House candidates linked to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, has previously characterized 9/11 as a “terrorist attack by a few people.”
His backing of veteran Palestinian-American activist Abar Khawas was confirmed by his mayoral transition team’s members during a private Democratic Socialists of America meeting in Manhattan last week, as reported by a local news outlet.
Sam McCann, a key political adviser for Mamdani during this transition, mentioned in the meeting that “He has great respect for everyone in this campaign, but he will support whatever Abba pursues.”
Mamdani has not yet responded to requests for comments, nor has his spokesperson.
Kawas, who has been an organizer in New York City’s Arab and Muslim communities since 2010, is looking to secure support from the New York City DSA to run in Queens’ 34th Congressional District.
This district is currently represented by Rep. Jessica Gonzalez Rojas, who left her position to challenge Sen. Jessica Ramos and endorsed her chief of staff, Brian Romero, in the Democratic primary.
Kawas has previously indicated that 9/11 involved “a few people.” She is also associated with the Islamic charity CAIR, which has faced accusations of links to Hamas.
Recent social media posts have highlighted some of Kawas’s past comments, particularly those that have drawn controversy. She stated, “Systems like capitalism, racism, white supremacy, and Islamophobia have all been used to colonize land and take resources from other peoples. So this is a long trajectory, and we just saw the manifestation of its continuation on 9/11.”
Furthermore, she expressed that it is “reprehensible” to apologize for terrorist attacks committed by a few individuals while there has been no similar acknowledgment for historical atrocities like genocide and slavery.
Efforts to get in touch with Kawas for her perspective have been unsuccessful.
