August 13, 2026 | 11:02 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has walked back claims that police officers would protect his wife during an upcoming personal trip to the Middle East, following a refusal from the New York Police Department (NYPD).
The First Lady, 29-year-old Rama Duwaji, is scheduled to depart on September 20 to visit family in Syria and Lebanon. Both nations are currently listed under the U.S. State Department’s Level 4 "Do Not Travel" advisories due to security risks and terrorism concerns.
The controversy began when City Hall spokesperson Dora Pekec told the New York Post that an NYPD security detail would join Duwaji "upon the strong recommendation of the NYPD." However, law enforcement officials quickly denied the arrangement.
An NYPD spokesperson told Fox News that the department does not send personnel to Level 4 advisory regions for personal, discretionary travel unrelated to official police work.
Addressing the conflicting statements during an interview with local news outlet PIX11, Mamdani attributed the initial report to an internal staff "miscommunication." He confirmed that when his wife takes the trip, she will do so without any police detail.
According to sources familiar with the matter cited by Yahoo News, Duwaji had personally requested the security arrangement after traveling abroad without protection the previous month. Sources emphasized that the upcoming visit involves no official city business.
The suggestion that detectives might accompany the mayor's wife abroad sparked strong pushback from police representatives. Scott Munro, president of the NYPD Detectives’ Endowment Association, told media outlets that officers are needed in New York City to fight crime and protect local residents. He emphasized that the union would oppose sending members to a high-risk foreign country for anything other than a legitimate police operation.
Former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton also weighed in, calling the proposed protection "ill-advised" and warning that such an assignment would be costly, complex, and potentially dangerous for personnel.
The dispute highlights ongoing friction between Mamdani and the city's police force. As reported by The Washington Times, the left-wing mayor previously drew criticism for social media posts calling to defund and dismantle the department in social media posts during 2020. However, he stated during his mayoral campaign that he did not support defunding the police.
Relations between City Hall and rank-and-file officers have remained uneasy since he took office. Just last week, Zohran Mamdani was booed offstage by audience members within a minute of attempting to speak at an NYPD National Night Out event on Staten Island.
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