In a striking display of unity, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani shook hands during the 9/11 commemoration ceremony at Ground Zero on Friday. The gesture came just days after Giuliani, who led the city during the 2001 attacks, publicly called on Mamdani to skip the memorial, citing deep disagreements over the mayor's policies and appointments.
Giuliani had told Newsmax earlier in the week that Mamdani's presence would be offensive, saying, "having lost friends there, and being very close to many of the families, it offends me that he's coming." He also made unsubstantiated claims, tinged with anti-Muslim rhetoric, that Mamdani does not view the 9/11 attacks as an act of Islamic terrorism. "They have every desire to take us over," Giuliani said of Muslims, adding that Mamdani is "a clear supporter of that."
The tension stems partly from Mamdani's appointment of Ramzi Kassem as the city's top legal counsel. Kassem previously represented a convicted al-Qaeda member whose brother-in-law was among the 19 hijackers. This appointment prompted a petition from some 9/11 victims' families urging Mamdani not to attend the ceremony, alleging that he supports individuals "dismissive of American institutions or insufficiently critical of extremist ideologies."
Despite the pressure, Mamdani dismissed the calls, emphasizing that the focus should remain on the victims and first responders. When pressed about Giuliani's comments, he told reporters he "did not have much more to add." His stance was echoed by Governor Kathy Hochul, who defended Mamdani's attendance, writing on X: "Division should not prevail over the spirit of unity that brought us together after September 11th. On this 25th anniversary, we should honor those we lost by coming together again as New Yorkers and Americans. The Mayor of New York City will be there, as he should be."
The handshake at the ceremony was a rare moment of civility between the two, but it did little to resolve the underlying disputes. Earlier this week, Mamdani's office released records from Giuliani's administration showing that city leaders had misrepresented air quality conditions in Manhattan after the attacks. Mamdani stated, "It would be one thing if government had stood alongside survivors and provided them with everything they needed at every step of the way," adding that "could not be further" from what actually occurred.
When asked whether Giuliani had lied about air quality, Mamdani declined to directly answer, saying, "I leave it to New Yorkers to make their judgements." The release of these records has added a new layer to the ongoing debate over the city's handling of post-9/11 health issues.
The commemoration itself was marked by solemn tributes, with families reading names of the victims. The handshake between Mamdani and Giuliani, while brief, was seen by many as a symbol of the city's resilience and its ability to come together in remembrance, even amid political differences.
For more on Mamdani's recent actions, including his release of air quality records and his backing from Hochul, follow The World Signal's coverage.
