A post by radical Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani, the frontrunner to become New York City’s next mayor, ignited a firestorm after he proudly shared photos of himself smiling beside Imam Siraj Wahhaj — an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing — with lawmakers and public figures warning that jihad is coming to New York unless voters wake up.
Mamdani posted the photos to his own X account, writing that he had “the pleasure of meeting with Imam Siraj Wahhaj,” whom he praised as “one of the nation’s foremost Muslim leaders and a pillar of the Bed-Stuy community for nearly half a century.”
The New York Post, which reported on the image the next day, filled in what Mamdani’s caption left out — noting Wahhaj was named by prosecutors as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing that killed six people, had preached that homosexuality is a “disease,” and once called for an unarmed “army of 10,000 men” to wage a gun-free jihad through New York City.
By Saturday morning, national and local officials were blasting the Democratic nominee for posing arm-in-arm with a figure linked to terror and hate, warning that his embrace of extremism was a direct threat to New York’s security.
Vice President posted a cutting rebuke, writing sarcastically: “I’ve been reliably informed that Democrats are opposed to any kind of political violence, so I look forward to them universally condemning Zohran Mamdani for campaigning with an unindicted co-conspirator in a terrorist plot that killed 6 New Yorkers.”
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) amplified the criticism with a taunting jab at the photo’s contradiction, writing: “‘I am not a jihadist.’ [poses arm-in-arm with an indisputable jihadist] You are being LIED TO, and let’s be honest — you know you’re being lied to.”
Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) urged federal scrutiny of Mamdani’s background, saying Homeland Security and the Justice Department should examine Mamdani’s past. “You cannot lie in the naturalization process about ties to terrorists or Marxists/communists,” he warned.
Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) cited Wahhaj’s 1991 sermon: “‘Wherever you came from, you came to America for one reason only — to establish Allah’s den… politics are a weapon to use in the cause of Islam.’”
Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) added flatly: “New York has fallen.”
In New York, the backlash quickly turned local.
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) — a New York congresswoman and House GOP leader expected to run for governor in 2026 — blasted Gov. Kathy Hochul for endorsing Mamdani weeks earlier and then failing to condemn him after the photo surfaced. In a statement on X, Stefanik charged that Hochul’s political desperation led her to “endorse a jihadist” who “praised and campaigned with the unindicted co-conspirator of the 1993 World Trade Center terrorist attack.”
She warned the endorsement “will destroy New York,” closing with “Fire Hochul — Save New York.”
New York City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, who represents Brooklyn’s 48th District, issued one of the strongest warnings yet: “Terrorist-lover rubbing elbows with a literal terrorist co-conspirator. You can’t make this up. Jihad is coming to NYC if Zohran Mamdani wins. Mark my words.”
Fellow council member Vickie Paladino (R-Queens) questioned, “Why are literally any of these people in the country?”
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY-17) mocked the “No Kings” protests against President Trump, contrasting the slogan with Mamdani’s embrace of extremists: “But No Kings!”
A local public safety account, Save the UWS, added: “Mamdani campaigned today with Imam Siraj Wahhaj, named an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 WTC bombing… His son was convicted for running a terrorist training camp. This is who’s backing Mamdani.”
Other prominent voices raised alarm at the prospect of a candidate with such associations leading America’s largest city.
Conservative commentator Mark Levin warned that “Mamdani could become America’s first pro-terrorist mayor.”
The account Libs of TikTok reposted Mamdani’s smiling photo, writing, “Nothing to see here… just Mamdani smiling gleefully with an alleged co-conspirator in the 1993 WTC bombing which left six people dead.”
Elon Musk reacted bluntly with a single word: “Wow.”
Writer and activist Zach Sage Fox pointed out Mamdani’s hypocrisy, posting, “Sorry Zohran, you can’t call yourself a ‘progressive’ while gleefully taking photos with people who want gays slaughtered en masse and imams who are accomplices to actual terrorist attacks.”
The New York Post’s revelations have further deepened alarm over Mamdani’s record as the race enters its final stretch. Mamdani, who shockingly won the Democratic nomination for mayor this summer, has a long history of incendiary rhetoric and radical activism — from recently appearing on Qatari state television, where he accused the United States of “bankrolling genocide,” to his refusal to denounce the call to “globalize the intifada.”
His family background has only amplified those concerns. His wife, Rama Duwaji, recently mourned a Palestinian influencer widely known for promoting Hamas propaganda, while his father, scholar Mahmood Mamdani, has written in defense of suicide bombings and published a laudatory biography of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin.
Now seeking to lead the nation’s largest city — and home to the largest Jewish population — Mamdani enters the final stretch of the campaign with his associations, rhetoric, and record under renewed public scrutiny ahead of Election Day.
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jklein@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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