Mamdani’s verdict came before the evidence

Holocaust scholar Dr. Alex Grobman argues that New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's genocide accusation against Israel is unfounded, noting the ICC warrant does not charge genocide and that casualty ratios do not demonstrate genocidal intent.

In this opinion piece, Holocaust scholar Dr. Alex Grobman argues that New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's repeated declarations that Israel committed genocide in Gaza are unfounded. Grobman points out that the ICC warrant against Netanyahu does not charge genocide, but rather war crimes and crimes against humanity, and that the ICJ has not ruled on the matter. He criticizes the claim that 86% of genocide scholars support the accusation, noting that only 28% of the association's membership voted, and that the membership includes non-scholars. Grobman presents casualty figures from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry (52,243 deaths) and Israel's estimate of 20,000 terrorists killed, calculating civilian-to-combatant ratios that he argues do not demonstrate genocidal intent. He also cites IDF evacuation warnings and a study by military historian Danny Orbach as evidence against a systematic policy of killing civilians. The piece concludes that the genocide accusation is a verdict without evidence.