The Satmar Grand Rebbe of Williamsburg, Rabbi Zalman Leib Teitelbaum, publicly condemned what he called "terrible provocation against the nations" by observant Jews attacking New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, according to remarks made during a major annual gathering on August 9-10.
Speaking at a commemoration marking the yahrzeit (death anniversary) of Satmar's founding Rebbe, Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum, he urged followers to refrain from incitement against the sitting mayor and warned against bringing certain publications attacking Mamdani into their homes.
"Recently, we have witnessed a terrible provocation against the nations by heimishe Yidden—through the incitement against the Mayor of New York City," the Rebbe stated, according to translations of his remarks from Yiddish. "To denounce the mayor and brand him an antisemite constitutes a true provocation against the nations."
The remarks drew on classical Satmar anti-Zionist theology emphasizing "hisgarus b'umos"—provoking the nations—a concept the movement has long viewed as dangerous for Jewish survival in exile. The Rebbe invoked the biblical Prophet Jeremiah's instruction for Jews in exile to seek the peace and welfare of their host city and pray for it, arguing that Torah law requires restraint in rhetoric toward government officials.
"We must remember that we are in exile," the Rebbe said, stressing that Jews must follow the Torah's path for life outside Israel and accept the "gezeirah of exile"—the decree of exile itself.
He also cautioned against what he characterized as compounding provocations, noting that Jewish attacks on Mamdani were bringing tensions related to the Land of Israel into the United States unnecessarily.
The remarks were framed as a call for rhetorical restraint rather than a full political endorsement of Mamdani's positions, including his vocal criticism of Israeli government policy. For Satmar, the issue centered on maintaining pragmatic relations with local officials on community concerns like education, housing, and religious accommodations.
But the Rebbe's stance triggered an immediate and forceful response from former New York Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who accused the Satmar leadership of abandoning the community in a moment of crisis.
"It pains my heart to have to talk about the Satmar Rebbe of Williamsburg condemning incitement against Mamdani. He's gotten it all wrong. The incitement is coming from Mamdani. Jews are being endangered," Hikind said. "I can't believe what the Satmar Rebbe is doing. How much, how much is this worth for Satmar? How many programs, for God's sake?"
Hikind rejected the Rebbe's invocation of exile theology as a rationale for restraint. "I know we're in Galus. I know that. But we need to protect ourselves. That's what Hashem wants," he stated. "The Justice Department is investigating the mayor for incitement, and the Satmar Rebbe is saying, 'Leave the guy alone. Don't bother him.' Is that good for the Jewish people? I wanna cry. I really want to cry."
Hikind drew a direct contrast with Satmar's founding Rebbe, invoking the movement's foundational narrative. "I believe the old Satmar Rebbe would never have done something like this. And let's all remember that the old Satmar Rebbe was saved from Europe, from Hitler's Europe, by the Zionists. That is a fact," he said.
Hikind escalated his critique by framing the Rebbe's position as abandonment during a period of rising antisemitism. "Antisemitism bursting like never before, Jews removing their yarmulkes, Jews removing any sign that they're Jewish. The Satmar Rebbe in Williamsburg, Mamdani, that's who he's protecting? He's on the side of Mamdani? God forgive us. God forgive us," he concluded.
The exchange reflects a broader pattern of relatively warmer ties between both major Satmar factions—Williamsburg under Zalman Leib and Kiryas Joel under his brother Aaron Teitelbaum—and Mayor Mamdani, rooted in shared anti-Zionist theological positions on the Satmar side and mutual pragmatic interests in local governance. That alignment has now become a flashpoint in the broader Jewish community, pitting Haredi leadership's emphasis on exile pragmatism against calls for communal solidarity in confronting the mayor.
