Mayor‑elect Zohran Mamdani is moving forward with a controversial choice for a top legal post in the city’s administration: law professor Ramzi Kassem. The Post reports that Kassem—who also sits on Mamdani’s legal transition team—appears to be the leading candidate for Corporation Counsel, the chief legal adviser to the mayor.
Kassem, 47, is best known for representing Mahmoud Khalil, a Syrian‑born activist who once led a pro‑Palestinian encampment at Columbia University. Khalil was seized by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and was slated for deportation; after 104 days in detention, federal judges ordered his release.
Kassem also defended Al Qaeda member Ahmed Al‑Darbi, who was convicted in 2017 for the 2002 bombing of the French supertanker Limburg off Yemen’s coast.
The prospective appointment raised eyebrows in the Jewish community. Ken Frydman, a Democratic operative, told The Post, “Everyone’s entitled to legal representation…even Mahmoud Khalil. But that doesn’t mean Ramzi Kassem had to represent him.” He added that the move “wouldn’t sit well” with many in that constituency.
Kassem’s record at Columbia reveals earlier involvement in campus protests. While studying law on a fellowship funded by members of the Soros family, he published a letter to the Columbia Spectator in 1999 criticizing a sandwich menu called an “Israeli wrap” as offensive to Muslims and Arabs.
In subsequent op‑eds, he warned of what he called “a clear case of ethnic cleansing” by Israel and asserted that Jews had come to the Middle East “with the intention of conquering the land.” He dismissed a two‑state solution as neither viable nor desirable.
Despite the controversies, some insiders see Kassem as a fitting choice. Lawyer Ron Kuby said the Corporation Counsel’s office needed an upgrade, adding, “I have no giant objection to the way Corp Counsel has been functioning but so many people at the top have just been there for too long.”
Kassem founded a no‑cost clinic at CUNY in 2009 called Creating Law Enforcement Accountability and Responsibility (CLEAR). The nonprofit, largely financed by the Open Society Foundations, has received more than $3 million from George Soros and over $1 million from MacKenzie Scott.
Kassem also led CLEAR, which offers free legal advice to underserved New Yorkers, and was appointed a senior policy adviser on immigration by the Biden administration in 2022. The council of the Association of the City of New York’s attorneys remains silent on the matter.
It’s worth noting that Kassem isn’t the only polarizing figure on the shortlist. The Post previously named “social‑justice attorney” Steven Banks as another contender—raising concerns that an activist mindset might steer the office’s decisions.
The Council on American Islamic Relations, a prominent Muslim civil‑rights group, awarded Kassem in September for his work defending Khalil. Meanwhile, both Texas and Florida have recently labeled CAIR a foreign terrorist organization.
Stay informed on all the latest news, real-time breaking news updates, and follow all the important headlines in world News on Latest NewsX. Follow us on social media Facebook, Twitter(X), Gettr and subscribe our Youtube Channel.
