An anticipated visit by the wife of the mayor of New York to Lebanon and Syria turned into a security and political issue in the United States, after the possibility of her being accompanied by members of the New York Police was raised, before the name “Hezbollah” entered the line of controversy, following statements by a pro-Israel activist in which he claimed that the party would provide her with protection and receive her as a “hero.”

New York Mayor Zahran Mamdani denied that the city police would protect his wife, Rama Dawaji, during her upcoming visit to the region, explaining in an interview with a local television channel that the talk about accompanying her with security personnel came as a result of a “misunderstanding.” But he did not reveal who would be responsible for securing her during her trip to Lebanon and Syria.

Mamdani’s clarification came one day after his spokeswoman, Dora Bekic, confirmed a report published by the New York Post regarding Dawaji’s trip, which is supposed to begin on September 20.

“Based on the unequivocal recommendation of the NYPD, First Lady Douajji’s special protection team will accompany her during her travel to visit her family in Syria and Lebanon,” Bekic said.

This statement sparked a wave of criticism in New York, against the backdrop of the possibility of using public funds to secure a personal visit to a woman whom Mamdani is keen to describe as an “ordinary person,” in addition to the fact that the US State Department warns against traveling to Lebanon and Syria due to the security conditions in the two countries.

The New York Post, a conservative newspaper known for its highly critical stance on Mamdani, quoted a source it said was familiar with Dawaji’s protection arrangements, saying that it was the mayor’s wife who “specifically” requested protection from the New York Police, after she had made a previous visit outside the United States without a similar security escort.

But the New York Police Department, headed by Jewish Commissioner Jessica Tisch, denied that it intended to send its officers to accompany Dowagi, and said in a statement: “The New York Police Department does not send officers to countries subject to a Level 4 travel warning for personal reasons that are not related to investigative activity. This trip is not for investigative purposes, and therefore NYPD officers will not travel for it.”

Dawaji, 29 years old, is an American of Syrian origins and works in the field of illustration, and she still identifies herself on her website as “Syrian.”

The Israeli report indicated that Dawaji, like her husband, is known for her anti-Israel positions, and that during the current year she was forced to apologize for publications in which she praised Palestinian militants.

Among the revealed posts dating back to the past decade were her praises of the Palestinian plane hijacker, Laila Khaled, and members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine. She also wrote that Tel Aviv “should never have existed in the first place,” and described all of its residents as “occupiers.”

Dawaji said that these posts date back to her teenage years. However, the report also indicated that, after the October 7 attack, she placed likes on posts that celebrated the Hamas attack, as well as on a post that claimed that the rapes attributed to the movement against hostages and victims were a “mass hoax.”

In the midst of the controversy, pro-Israel Jewish activist Dov Hikind expressed his anger at the possibility of the New York Police being assigned to protect Dawaji in Lebanon and Syria, before this trend was practically cancelled.

Hikind, founder of Americans Against Antisemitism and a former member of the New York State House of Representatives, said that police officers, not Mamdani’s wife, would be a potential target of any attack.

He added: “We are putting the officers in danger. They will be seen as the bad guys. These are war zones. Dawaji does not need protection. She will be welcomed as a heroine and will be protected by Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis.”

Thus, the controversy ended with an official denial that the New York Police accompanied Dawaji, while the arrangements for her protection during her upcoming visit to Lebanon and Syria remained without explanation.