NEW YORK — Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he was satisfied with the NYPD’s handling of a protest against the sale of property in Israel and the West Bank outside Manhattan’s Park East Synagogue Tuesday evening as he walks a fine line between standing with his progressive political base while not ruffling feathers in the Police Department.

But Council Speaker Julie Menin took a much more critical tone in response to the rally, blasting protesters’ rhetoric she said fuels antisemitism.

The fallout from Tuesday’s protest, while less dramatic than a similar demonstration outside the synagogue in November, touched on issues that have become deeply contentious across NYC. It also pointed to the delicate balance Mamdani, who has voiced opposition to the land sale, is trying to strike in bringing his democratic socialist politics into City Hall.

“We in this city believe in the sacrosanct nature of the right to protest, and also are committed to ensuring that any New Yorker can safely enter or exit from a house of worship,” the mayor said Wednesday. “... And I do believe that the police ensured that yesterday.”

Mamdani added that his pro-Palestine stance doesn’t take away from concerns about anti-semitism.

“I think that critique of the policies of a government are very much separate from bigotry towards the people of a specific religious faith, and there is no tolerance for antisemitism, there is no tolerance for hatred of Jewish New Yorkers,” he said.

But Menin said Wednesday she was “deeply disturbed” by anti-Israel protesters’ chants like “from the river to the sea” and “Long live the intifada,” which she said “only fuel the flames of antisemitism.”

“I’m grateful for the NYPD officers who worked under difficult circumstances to maintain public safety,” Menin added.

Hundreds gathered outside the synagogue to protest an real estate event at the synagogue that advertised homes for sale including in the occupied West Bank — which international law deems illegal.

The NYPD turned out in force to control the crowd and there were no arrests, though at least one officer was injured and cops deployed pepper spray. Mamdani’s allies slammed the police, who video shows pepper spraying protestors.

Clare Valdez, a close ally of the mayor, slammed the NYPD’s response: “New Yorkers don’t just have the right to protest the sale of stolen Palestinian land — they have a responsibility to. NYPD should be protecting our first amendment rights, not blocking and pepper spraying us when we exercise them.”

The Upper East Side synagogue was the sight of a controversial protest six months ago, which prompted accessions of anti-semitism and inspired legislation intended to create “security perimeters” around houses of worship.

Tuesday’s protest comes after the City Council passed a law aimed at limiting the scope of protests outside synagogues — a move inspired by the November rally. The legislation requires the NYPD to make public a plan on how they will manage protests, including how they intend to set up perimeters.

Menin said the bill will help “bring greater transparency” to how the NYPD handles protests.

Local Councilmember Virginia Maloney also praised the police and lauded the Council’s efforts to pass the “security perimeter” legislation.

“The Council passed this law to create clearer protections, stronger coordination, and greater transparency around how we keep religious institutions safe,” Maloney said.

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