A day after deflecting questions on Fox News about whether Hamas should “lay down their weapons and leave the leadership in Gaza,” New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani offered an answer.

“Of course I believe that they should lay down their arms,” Mamdani said. “I’m proud to be one of the first elected officials in the state who called for a ceasefire, and calling for a ceasefire means ceasing fire. That means all parties have to cease fire and put down their weapons.”

Mamdani’s comment came as the city’s three main mayoral candidates convened Thursday night for the first general election debate, which focused extensively on Jewish issues including Israel and antisemitism.

Mamdani, a democratic socialist who is the Democratic nominee, faced questions about his views on

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