New York City (QNN)- An attendee at New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's inauguration on Thursday held up a picture of Hind Rajab, a 5-year-old Palestinian child who was killed by Israeli forces in Gaza after hours of pleading for help.
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Hind’s story went viral on social media in 2024 around the world following a phone recording of her and her family’s final moments while they were trying to flee Israel’s attacks.
On the call, which lasted for about three hours, Hind begged rescue workers to come save her after the family’s car came under Israeli fire and she became the sole survivor, stranded inside with her dead relatives.
Two dispatchers with the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) sent to save her were also killed by Israeli forces.
When Hind picked up the phone and spoke to the PRCS, she identified Israeli military vehicles near the family car. “The tank is next to me. [It’s] coming from the front of the car,” she said. Around three hours later, the connection with Hind was cut off. Later, 335 bullet holes were found in the family’s car.
Hind's photo was waved in the air as the national anthem was sung outside New York City Hall, where hundreds gathered to mark the beginning of the new administration.
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Mamdani promised on Thursday to be a mayor for all New Yorkers, and has made it clear that antisemitism will not be tolerated, while also saying he will advocate for Palestinians.
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Mamdani was sworn in as the first Muslim mayor of New York City on Thursday during a private ceremony where he took his oath using his grandfather's Quran and a 200-year-old copy of the Quran on loan from the New York Public Library.
The 34-year-old, who is also New York's first mayor of South Asian descent and the first to be born in Africa, is among only a handful of US politicians to be sworn in with the Quran.
Mamdani drew global attention to his campaign because of his strong stance against Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
Recently, he stated that the United States is funding the genocide during a meeting with President Donald Trump. It was the first known occasion that Israel’s genocide in Gaza was mentioned within the walls of the White House.
At one point he said that he would arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - per the International Criminal Court arrest warrant - if he visited New York.
