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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani was reportedly denied the opportunity to speak Friday during the funeral of Army Sgt. Angel Sarah Rampersad in Queens, one of three U.S. service members killed in Jordan during an Iranian attack on July 17.
Mamdani attended the service at a church in Ozone Park but did not deliver remarks honoring Rampersad.
According to the New York Post, Mamdani appeared to review prepared remarks on an iPad as other dignitaries spoke, but his name was never called.
A source familiar with the funeral told the New York Post that Rampersad’s family chose not to have Mamdani speak in an effort to avoid any “political distractions.”
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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, left, and Army Sgt. Angel Sarah Rampersad, right. Mamdani attended Rampersad’s funeral in Queens, though his office later released prepared remarks after he did not speak during the service. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images; 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command)
The mayor’s office later released his prepared remarks.
“It is often said that our fallen ‘gave their tomorrows for our today,'” Mamdani planned to say. “Sergeant Rampersad had tomorrows waiting for her: birthdays, ordinary mornings, evenings spent with her loved ones. But she gave every one of them up so that we could have ours — so that we could stand here today, safe and protected.”
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The Department of War said “Sgt. Angel Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York, is believed to have been killed in action on July 17, 2026, during an enemy attack at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, Jordan.” (10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command)
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, delivered remarks during the service.
“I feel after reading and admiring this woman from a distance, I feel like she could be one of my daughters,” Hochul said.
The Department of War said Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York, was killed in action during an enemy attack at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan.
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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York State Governor Kathy Hochul pay their respects as pallbearers carry the casket of U.S. soldier Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, who was killed in an attack on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, outside Calvary Assembly of God church, in the Ozone Park neighborhood of Queens, New York, U.S., July 31, 2026. (REUTERS/Jordan Tovin)
According to U.S. Central Command, Rampersad and two other U.S. service members were killed while CENTCOM and partner forces “defended against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks.”
The other two service members killed were identified as 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas. They were deployed to Jordan in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, the international campaign against ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
Rampersad was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 57th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 52d Air Defense Artillery Brigade, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command in Ansbach, Germany. She served as a 25U Signal Operations Support Specialist, according to the Department of War.
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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani departs the funeral service of U.S. soldier Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, who was killed in an attack on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, at Calvary Assembly of God church in the Ozone Park neighborhood of Queens, New York, U.S., July 31, 2026. (REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz)
Digital has reached out to Mamdani’s office for comment.
Digital’s Greg Norman-Diamond contributed to this report.
