Socialist New York mayoral contender Zohran Mamdani expressed that Stephen Colbert’s CBS late-night program invited him to ‘play a game’ intended to showcase his views on Gaza.

Mamdani, who is currently anticipated to secure victory in November, has captured attention both for his anti-Israel stance and his progressive economic strategies for New York City.

Set to appear on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert before the primary, Mamdani was asked to creatively discuss his views.

Prior to the interview, Jewish community leaders urged Colbert to challenge Mamdani on his avoidance of denouncing the exhortation to ‘globalize the intifada’—a provocative phrase he has reportedly utilized publicly for over ten years.

The New Yorker detailed that before Mamdani and former competitor turned ally Brad Lander appeared on stage, the producers broached the idea of having them engage in a ‘thumbs up or thumbs down’ activity regarding the conflict.

Examples included giving a thumbs up or a thumbs down to Hamas or simply a Palestinian state. 

‘I just couldn’t believe what was happening, that a genocide could be distilled into a late-night game,’ Mamdani said.

His team was equally perplexed, questioning why the characteristically progressive Colbert would not instead highlight aspects such as Mamdani being the first Muslim mayoral candidate in New York’s history.

The Daily Mail has reached out to CBS for comment.  

During the interview, Colbert, 61, asked Mamdani and Lander about Israel and whether they believe it ‘has the right to exist.’

‘Yes, like all nations. I believe it has a right to exist, and a responsibility also to uphold international law,’ Mamdani said.

Colbert faced backlash for failing to ask Mamdani tougher questions about his stance on Israel.

Instead, Colbert simply stated that some voters are ‘very upset by some of the things that you’ve said in the past,’ adding that ‘they are afraid that your mayorship would actually lead to increased antisemitism.’

The question teed up Mamdani, 33, to denounce antisemitism while not addressing his past statements, which have included calls to ‘globalize the intifada’ that some say is a call to violence against Jews. 

Critics of the interview ripped Colbert for not more forcefully broaching the subject of Mamdani’s past remarks.

The news comes as the first phase of a new peace deal between Israel and Hamas brokered by Donald Trump appears to be underway.

Trump claimed the Israel and Hamas peace deal would bring an everlasting peace to the Middle East, where residents have been dancing in the streets celebrating the anticipated end to the two-year-long war. 

‘On Monday the hostages come back,’ the president said triumphantly on Friday evening, characterizing the deal as an ‘everlasting success.’ 

He also asserted that not only that Gaza would be rebuilt, but ‘the entire Middle East’ as part of the process — and claimed the rehabilitation of the war zone would be paid for by investments from neighboring Middle Eastern states.

‘I can tell you that I saw Israel dancing in the streets, but they were dancing in Qatar and Saudi Arabia and UAE, and many, many countries,’ the Republican stated, adding that officials in Iran, Russia, Egypt, Qatar were also eager to support the deal.

The Israeli military announced on Friday that the ceasefire is now in effect across Gaza city. 

Israel’s government approved the deal last night as thousands of Gaza citizens now roam the war-torn city. Israeli forces pulled back in accordance with the deal approved by the government.

The next phase of the ceasefire includes a 72-hour period where Hamas will release the remaining living hostages along with the bodies of the deceased. In exchange, Israel will free up to 2,000 Gaza prisoners as part of the deal. 

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu noted in his televised remarks last night that it is not likely all the bodies of the deceased hostages will be recovered. 

Meanwhile, Trump also shared that he will be speaking to the Knesset, or the Israeli parliament, on his trip, which will also include a stop in Egypt. 

The president announced the breakthrough on his Truth Social platform yesterday by quoting from the Gospel of Matthew: ‘Blessed are the peacemakers.’ 

Even before a deal had been signed, he was looking forward, saying that ‘Iran wants peace’, and ending the war in Ukraine was ‘going to happen’ next.

Trump told his cabinet: ‘The whole world has come together for this. People who didn’t like each other, neighboring countries. This is a moment in time.

‘We reached a momentous breakthrough in the Middle East, something people said was never going to be done. We ended the war in Gaza. An everlasting peace.’

He added: ‘It’s really peace in the Middle East. You remember October 7 was terrible, but from the Hamas standpoint, they’ve probably lost 70,000 people. That’s big retribution. At some point, that whole thing has to stop.’

Trump – expected to be feted as a hero when he visits the region on Sunday – used the force of his personality to broker the deal.

The President’s 20-point peace plan – hammered out in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh along with negotiators from Qatar, Egypt and Turkey – was achieved despite America refusing to follow the lead of Sir Keir Starmer and French president Emmanuel Macron in controversially recognizing a Palestine state.

Securing the return of the hostages comes at a price, though, with Israel agreeing to release 2,000 Hamas prisoners.