New York City Mayor Mamdani turned a solemn 9/11 memorial ceremony with King Charles and Queen Camilla into an international embarrassment, deliberately snubbing the British royals who came to honor the 67 British citizens killed in the September 11 terror attacks.
Mayor Refuses to Welcome Royal Guests
King Charles and Queen Camilla made their first visit to America in nearly two decades on Wednesday to pay respects at the 9/11 memorial in lower Manhattan. The visit held deep significance as Britain lost more citizens on September 11, 2001 than any nation except the United States. Many British executives were attending a conference at Windows on the World atop One World Trade Center, from which no one escaped. Yet Mamdani deliberately omitted any mention of the King from his official press schedule, listing only that he would attend a wreath-laying ceremony without noting its purpose.
When reporters asked what he might say to Charles, Mamdani delivered a calculated insult. He stated he would encourage the King to return the Koh-i-Noor Diamond, implying it belongs to India. The mayor’s juvenile attempt at geopolitics came hours before a ceremony honoring mass murder victims. His tone conveyed what observers described as intolerable boredom, treating the solemn occasion as beneath him. Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg stepped in to fulfill basic diplomatic courtesies, spending significant time walking and talking with the King through the memorial grounds.
Mayor Mamdani, pressed on what he would say to King Charles if they talk later:
“If I was to speak to the king… I would probably encourage him to return the Kohinoor diamond,” Mamdani says, referring to the gem in the British Crown Jewels, which taken from India. pic.twitter.com/5D4PGoQhv5
— Josie Stratman (@JosieStratman) April 29, 2026
A Pattern of Royal Remembrance
The British royal family has made 9/11 remembrance a cornerstone of US-UK relations. Queen Elizabeth visited a lower Manhattan garden dedicated to British victims in 2010. Prince William and Princess Kate paid respects at the memorial in 2014. This tradition honors the deep bonds between nations whose citizens worked side by side in New York’s financial district, making quick trips across the Atlantic so routine that some victims had been in New York for only hours before the attacks.
What This Means for New York
Mamdani had one job as host: show basic respect. Instead, he chose to grandstand on colonialism at a ceremony honoring the dead. His behavior raised serious questions about his capacity to represent a global city with extensive international history and relationships. The mayor briefly greeted Charles at the memorial, but his advance comments had already poisoned what should have been a moment of shared grief and remembrance. As New York approaches the 25th anniversary of September 11, Mamdani made the occasion about himself rather than the more than 3,000 Americans and 67 British citizens who perished.
