Mamdani Admits ‘Aunt’ in Hijab Sob Story Isn’t Actually His Aunt

Socialist Democratic New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani admitted Monday that the woman he described as his aunt — who stopped taking the subway after 9/11 — was not actually his aunt, but a distant relative.

The socialist lawmaker made the clarification at a press conference after critics circulated photos online showing one of his real aunts without a hijab. Mamdani said he had been referring to “Zehra fuhi,” a relative on his father’s side.

“I was speaking about my aunt, I was speaking about Zehra fuhi, my father’s cousin who sadly passed away a few years ago,” Mamdani told reporters.

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“And for the takeaway from my more than 10-minute address about Islamophobia in this race and in this city, to be the question of my aunt, tells you everything about Andrew Cuomo and his inability to reckon with a crisis of his own making,” Mamdani said.

The controversy began last week when Mamdani grew emotional while recounting how a Muslim woman in his family allegedly gave up public transportation after the 2001 terror attacks because she feared being targeted for wearing her hijab.

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