NYPD refuses to provide security for mayor's wife on trip to Syria

In September 2023, Rama Duwaji, the wife of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, planned a trip to Syria and Lebanon to visit family. This trip raised significant concerns due to the U.S. State Department's travel advisories, which classified both countries as Level 4 'Do Not Travel' zones due to ongoing instability and security threats. Initially, the mayor's office claimed that the NYPD would provide a security detail for Duwaji, citing a strong recommendation from the police department. However, the NYPD quickly refuted this claim, stating that they do not send officers to countries with such high travel advisories for non-investigative purposes. This public disagreement between the mayor's office and the NYPD led to Mayor Mamdani attributing the situation to a miscommunication within his staff. He clarified that Duwaji would be traveling without any NYPD escort, emphasizing that the trip was personal and not related to city business. The incident sparked discussions about the appropriateness of using taxpayer-funded police resources for personal travel, especially to high-risk areas. Duwaji's previous travels, including a trip to Spain for a spiritual retreat, also came under scrutiny, raising questions about her public persona as a 'private person' while engaging in high-profile events.