{"id":1796033,"date":"2026-02-27T05:33:04","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T02:33:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1796033"},"modified":"2026-02-27T05:33:04","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T02:33:04","slug":"mamdani-has-big-promises-to-deliver-on-as-new-york-mayor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1796033","title":{"rendered":"Mamdani has big promises to deliver on as New York mayor"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/74845215_6.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article class=\"sk6xmai\">\n<div class=\"content-area sa7l9jt s9mg977\">\n<section data-tracking-name=\"sharing-icons-inline\" class=\"c75t7t0 hh5424a in-line closed\">\n<div class=\"copy-button-wrapper closed\"><span class=\"svdcmki\">https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59UTC<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<figure class=\"s4bcs45\"><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/74845215_800.webp 50w, https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/74845215_801.webp 129w, https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/74845215_802.webp 352w, https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/74845215_803.webp 575w\" media=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 575px)\" height=\"100\" width=\"100\" \/><figcaption class=\"c1oedowi lofg86o m4xla6a s16w0xvi rcjjkz7 w128axg5 b1fzgn0z\">Mamdani (left) first met Trump after his election in November, when the atmosphere was surprisingly cordial<small class=\"copyright c19ed66t ihwmx5 idu7i8u lxmvniw icns9en rcjjkz7 w128axg5 b1fzgn0z\">Image: Jonathan Ernst\/REUTERS<\/small><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div data-tracking-skip=\"true\" data-tracking-name=\"rich-text\" class=\"c17j8gzx rc0m0op r1ebneao s198y7xq rich-text l1evdo4u blt0baw s16w0xvi rcjjkz7 w128axg5 b1fzgn0z\">\n<p>A foreign student at Columbia University was released just hours after being detained by federal immigration authorities on Thursday and shortly after <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/new-york\/t-40086194\">New York City<\/a> Mayor <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/zohran-mamdani-who-is-the-new-mayor-of-new-york-city\/a-74572160\">Zohran Mamdani<\/a>\u00a0expressed concerns about her arrest during a meeting with President <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-president-donald-trump-russia-ukraine-israel-gaza-tariffs-trade-war\/t-19434433\">Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Elmina\u00a0Aghayeva, a neuroscience and politics senior from <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/azerbaijan\/t-38438597\">Azerbaijan<\/a>, was arrested in Manhattan early on Thursday morning after <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/how-are-ice-agents-recruited-and-who-are-they\/a-75506003\">Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)<\/a> agents reportedly accessed her apartment under false pretenses.<\/p>\n<h2>What do we know about Columbia student Aghayeva&#8217;s arrest?<\/h2>\n<p>&#8220;The agents gained entry by stating they were police searching for a missing child,&#8221; said Columbia&#8217;s acting president, Claire Shipman, adding that CCTV cameras had captured the agents in a hallway showing pictures of the alleged child.<\/p>\n<p>In a message to her 100,000 followers on <a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/ellharve\/\" title=\"External link \u2014 Instagram\">Instagram<\/a>, where she documents her life as an immigrant student, Aghayeva wrote: &#8220;DHS [Department of Homeland Security] illegally arrested me. Please help.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>A DHS spokesperson was cited by the Associated Press news agency as saying\u00a0Aghayeva&#8217;s student visa had been terminated in 2016 for failing to attend classes, describing her as an &#8220;illegal alien&#8221; against whom removal proceedings had been launched.<\/p>\n<p>But Aghayeva&#8217;s lawyers said she had entered the United States legally in 2016 and filed a petition at Manhattan Federal Court stating that she was being &#8220;wrongly held in detention without justification.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2>Aghayeva arrest: What did Mamdani say to Trump?<\/h2>\n<p>Meanwhile in Washington, during a meeting with President Trump about New York City housing, Mayor Mamdani reportedly raised the issue of Aghayeva&#8217;s detention and was later told that she would be released.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In our meeting earlier, I shared my concerns about Columbia student Elmina Aghayeva, who was detained by ICE this morning,&#8221; he wrote on social media later on Thursday, saying that he had just got off the phone with Trump who &#8220;has just informed me that she will be released imminently.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>DHS confirmed the release shortly after and Aghayeva posed on Instagram: &#8220;I just got out a little while ago. I am safe and okay.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The rollercoaster series of events marked the latest development in the unlikely relationship between Trump and Mamdani, the young, Muslim, democratic socialist mayor who had previously been labeled a <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/fact-check-truth-about-zohran-mamdani\/a-74616614\">&#8220;communist lunatic&#8221; and &#8220;total nut job&#8221;<\/a> by the Republican president and threatened with deportation.<\/p>\n<div class=\"vjs-wrapper embed big\">\n<h2 aria-label=\"Embedded video \u2014 Mamdani has big promises to deliver on as New York mayor\" class=\"headline\">Mamdani has big promises to deliver on as New York mayor<\/h2>\n<p><video id=\"video-75359832\" controls playsinline preload=\"none\" poster=\"image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=\" data-id=\"75359832\" data-posterurl=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/75359732_605.webp\" data-duration=\"01:54\"><source src=\"https:\/\/hlsvod.dw.com\/i\/vps\/webvideos\/ENG\/2026\/NEWS\/NEWSENG260101_Mamdani_01ICW_,AVC_480x270,AVC_512x288,AVC_640x360,AVC_960x540,AVC_1280x720,AVC_1920x1080,.mp4.csmil\/master.m3u8\" type=\"application\/x-mpegURL\" \/><\/video><\/div>\n<p>The meeting in the Oval Office on Thursday was the pair&#8217;s second face-to-face encounter since <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/new-york-city-mayoral-election\/a-74591495\">Mamdani&#8217;s landslide election win<\/a> last year.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/trump-meets-new-york-city-mayor-elect-mamdani\/a-74844475\">During their first meeting in November<\/a>, Mamdani appeared to charm Trump, who cordially declared that Mamdani was &#8220;a very rational person&#8221; whom he was &#8220;going to be helping to make everybody&#8217;s dream come true: having a strong and very safe New York.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile on Thursday, Mamdani reportedly also called on Trump to drop cases against several other students currently facing deportation for their roles in pro-Palestinian\u00a0Columbia campus protests \u2013 in which Aghayeva is not known to have been involved.<\/p>\n<div class=\"vjs-wrapper embed big\">\n<h2 aria-label=\"Embedded video \u2014 Trump administration seeks to deport Palestinian activist\" class=\"headline\">Trump administration seeks to deport Palestinian activist<\/h2>\n<p><video id=\"video-71907451\" controls playsinline preload=\"none\" poster=\"image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=\" data-id=\"71907451\" data-posterurl=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/71907387_605.webp\" data-duration=\"02:35\"><source src=\"https:\/\/hlsvod.dw.com\/i\/dwtv_video\/flv\/je\/je20250313_QKhalil02D_,AVC_480x270,AVC_512x288,AVC_640x360,AVC_960x540,AVC_1280x720,AVC_1920x1080,.mp4.csmil\/master.m3u8\" type=\"application\/x-mpegURL\" \/><\/video><\/div>\n<p><em>Edited by: Rana Taha<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div data-tracking-skip=\"true\" data-tracking-name=\"rich-text\" class=\"c17j8gzx rc0m0op r1ebneao s198y7xq rich-text l1evdo4u blt0baw s16w0xvi rcjjkz7 w128axg5 b1fzgn0z\">\n<p>A foreign student at Columbia University was released just hours after being detained by federal immigration authorities on Thursday and shortly after <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/new-york\/t-40086194\">New York City<\/a> Mayor <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/zohran-mamdani-who-is-the-new-mayor-of-new-york-city\/a-74572160\">Zohran Mamdani<\/a>\u00a0expressed concerns about her arrest during a meeting with President <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-president-donald-trump-russia-ukraine-israel-gaza-tariffs-trade-war\/t-19434433\">Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Elmina\u00a0Aghayeva, a neuroscience and politics senior from <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/azerbaijan\/t-38438597\">Azerbaijan<\/a>, was arrested in Manhattan early on Thursday morning after <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/how-are-ice-agents-recruited-and-who-are-they\/a-75506003\">Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)<\/a> agents reportedly accessed her apartment under false pretenses.<\/p>\n<h2>What do we know about Columbia student Aghayeva&#8217;s arrest?<\/h2>\n<p>&#8220;The agents gained entry by stating they were police searching for a missing child,&#8221; said Columbia&#8217;s acting president, Claire Shipman, adding that CCTV cameras had captured the agents in a hallway showing pictures of the alleged child.<\/p>\n<p>In a message to her 100,000 followers on <a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/ellharve\/\" title=\"External link \u2014 Instagram\">Instagram<\/a>, where she documents her life as an immigrant student, Aghayeva wrote: &#8220;DHS [Department of Homeland Security] illegally arrested me. Please help.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>A DHS spokesperson was cited by the Associated Press news agency as saying\u00a0Aghayeva&#8217;s student visa had been terminated in 2016 for failing to attend classes, describing her as an &#8220;illegal alien&#8221; against whom removal proceedings had been launched.<\/p>\n<p>But Aghayeva&#8217;s lawyers said she had entered the United States legally in 2016 and filed a petition at Manhattan Federal Court stating that she was being &#8220;wrongly held in detention without justification.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2>Aghayeva arrest: What did Mamdani say to Trump?<\/h2>\n<p>Meanwhile in Washington, during a meeting with President Trump about New York City housing, Mayor Mamdani reportedly raised the issue of Aghayeva&#8217;s detention and was later told that she would be released.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In our meeting earlier, I shared my concerns about Columbia student Elmina Aghayeva, who was detained by ICE this morning,&#8221; he wrote on social media later on Thursday, saying that he had just got off the phone with Trump who &#8220;has just informed me that she will be released imminently.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>DHS confirmed the release shortly after and Aghayeva posed on Instagram: &#8220;I just got out a little while ago. I am safe and okay.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The rollercoaster series of events marked the latest development in the unlikely relationship between Trump and Mamdani, the young, Muslim, democratic socialist mayor who had previously been labeled a <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/fact-check-truth-about-zohran-mamdani\/a-74616614\">&#8220;communist lunatic&#8221; and &#8220;total nut job&#8221;<\/a> by the Republican president and threatened with deportation.<\/p>\n<div class=\"vjs-wrapper embed big\">\n<h2 aria-label=\"Embedded video \u2014 Mamdani has big promises to deliver on as New York mayor\" class=\"headline\">Mamdani has big promises to deliver on as New York mayor<\/h2>\n<p><video id=\"video-75359832\" controls playsinline preload=\"none\" poster=\"image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=\" data-id=\"75359832\" data-posterurl=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/75359732_605.webp\" data-duration=\"01:54\"><source src=\"https:\/\/hlsvod.dw.com\/i\/vps\/webvideos\/ENG\/2026\/NEWS\/NEWSENG260101_Mamdani_01ICW_,AVC_480x270,AVC_512x288,AVC_640x360,AVC_960x540,AVC_1280x720,AVC_1920x1080,.mp4.csmil\/master.m3u8\" type=\"application\/x-mpegURL\" \/><\/video><\/div>\n<p>The meeting in the Oval Office on Thursday was the pair&#8217;s second face-to-face encounter since <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/new-york-city-mayoral-election\/a-74591495\">Mamdani&#8217;s landslide election win<\/a> last year.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/trump-meets-new-york-city-mayor-elect-mamdani\/a-74844475\">During their first meeting in November<\/a>, Mamdani appeared to charm Trump, who cordially declared that Mamdani was &#8220;a very rational person&#8221; whom he was &#8220;going to be helping to make everybody&#8217;s dream come true: having a strong and very safe New York.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile on Thursday, Mamdani reportedly also called on Trump to drop cases against several other students currently facing deportation for their roles in pro-Palestinian\u00a0Columbia campus protests \u2013 in which Aghayeva is not known to have been involved.<\/p>\n<div class=\"vjs-wrapper embed big\">\n<h2 aria-label=\"Embedded video \u2014 Trump administration seeks to deport Palestinian activist\" class=\"headline\">Trump administration seeks to deport Palestinian activist<\/h2>\n<p><video id=\"video-71907451\" controls playsinline preload=\"none\" poster=\"image\/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=\" data-id=\"71907451\" data-posterurl=\"https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/71907387_605.webp\" data-duration=\"02:35\"><source src=\"https:\/\/hlsvod.dw.com\/i\/dwtv_video\/flv\/je\/je20250313_QKhalil02D_,AVC_480x270,AVC_512x288,AVC_640x360,AVC_960x540,AVC_1280x720,AVC_1920x1080,.mp4.csmil\/master.m3u8\" type=\"application\/x-mpegURL\" \/><\/video><\/div>\n<p><em>Edited by: Rana Taha<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>A foreign student at Columbia University was released just hours after being detained by federal immigration authorities on Thursday and shortly after <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/new-york\/t-40086194\">New York City<\/a> Mayor <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/zohran-mamdani-who-is-the-new-mayor-of-new-york-city\/a-74572160\">Zohran Mamdani<\/a>\u00a0expressed concerns about her arrest during a meeting with President <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-president-donald-trump-russia-ukraine-israel-gaza-tariffs-trade-war\/t-19434433\">Donald Trump<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Elmina\u00a0Aghayeva, a neuroscience and politics senior from <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/azerbaijan\/t-38438597\">Azerbaijan<\/a>, was arrested in Manhattan early on Thursday morning after <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/how-are-ice-agents-recruited-and-who-are-they\/a-75506003\">Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)<\/a> agents reportedly accessed her apartment under false pretenses.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The agents gained entry by stating they were police searching for a missing child,&#8221; said Columbia&#8217;s acting president, Claire Shipman, adding that CCTV cameras had captured the agents in a hallway showing pictures of the alleged child.<\/p>\n<p>In a message to her 100,000 followers on <a rel=\"noopener follow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"external-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/ellharve\/\" title=\"External link \u2014 Instagram\">Instagram<\/a>, where she documents her life as an immigrant student, Aghayeva wrote: &#8220;DHS [Department of Homeland Security] illegally arrested me. Please help.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>A DHS spokesperson was cited by the Associated Press news agency as saying\u00a0Aghayeva&#8217;s student visa had been terminated in 2016 for failing to attend classes, describing her as an &#8220;illegal alien&#8221; against whom removal proceedings had been launched.<\/p>\n<p>But Aghayeva&#8217;s lawyers said she had entered the United States legally in 2016 and filed a petition at Manhattan Federal Court stating that she was being &#8220;wrongly held in detention without justification.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile in Washington, during a meeting with President Trump about New York City housing, Mayor Mamdani reportedly raised the issue of Aghayeva&#8217;s detention and was later told that she would be released.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;In our meeting earlier, I shared my concerns about Columbia student Elmina Aghayeva, who was detained by ICE this morning,&#8221; he wrote on social media later on Thursday, saying that he had just got off the phone with Trump who &#8220;has just informed me that she will be released imminently.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>DHS confirmed the release shortly after and Aghayeva posed on Instagram: &#8220;I just got out a little while ago. I am safe and okay.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The rollercoaster series of events marked the latest development in the unlikely relationship between Trump and Mamdani, the young, Muslim, democratic socialist mayor who had previously been labeled a <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/fact-check-truth-about-zohran-mamdani\/a-74616614\">&#8220;communist lunatic&#8221; and &#8220;total nut job&#8221;<\/a> by the Republican president and threatened with deportation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"vjs-no-js\">To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that <a href=\"https:\/\/videojs.com\/html5-video-support\/\" target=\"_blank\">supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The meeting in the Oval Office on Thursday was the pair&#8217;s second face-to-face encounter since <a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/new-york-city-mayoral-election\/a-74591495\">Mamdani&#8217;s landslide election win<\/a> last year.<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"internal-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/trump-meets-new-york-city-mayor-elect-mamdani\/a-74844475\">During their first meeting in November<\/a>, Mamdani appeared to charm Trump, who cordially declared that Mamdani was &#8220;a very rational person&#8221; whom he was &#8220;going to be helping to make everybody&#8217;s dream come true: having a strong and very safe New York.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile on Thursday, Mamdani reportedly also called on Trump to drop cases against several other students currently facing deportation for their roles in pro-Palestinian\u00a0Columbia campus protests \u2013 in which Aghayeva is not known to have been involved.<\/p>\n<p class=\"vjs-no-js\">To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that <a href=\"https:\/\/videojs.com\/html5-video-support\/\" target=\"_blank\">supports HTML5 video<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Edited by: Rana Taha<\/em><\/p>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.dw.com\/en\/us-detained-student-released-after-mamdani-meets-trump\/a-76143762&#8243;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/static.dw.com\/image\/74845215_6.jpg&#8221;] https:\/\/p.dw.com\/p\/59UTC Mamdani (left) first met Trump after his election in November, when the atmosphere was surprisingly cordialImage: Jonathan Ernst\/REUTERS A foreign student at Columbia University was released just hours after being detained by federal immigration authorities on Thursday and shortly after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u00a0expressed concerns about her arrest during [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,74],"class_list":["post-1796033","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-dw-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1796033","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1796033"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1796033\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1796033"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1796033"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1796033"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}