The Brooklyn Navy Yard will not renew the lease of Easy Aerial, a drone manufacturer with operations at the city-owned industrial complex, over its supplying of Israel with drones, NYC Council Member Lincoln Restler announced.

“Easy Aerial is leaving the Brooklyn Navy Yard,” Restler wrote. “This public asset should not be leasing space to companies producing drones that are being transformed into weapons of war.”

According to Restler, the decision was made in January 2026 and formalized at a board meeting last week, which he described as “essentially the final chance” to renew the lease. “I’ve been in close touch with BNY leadership & am grateful for their decision,” he added.

However, Brooklyn Navy Yard spokesperson Claire Holmes offered a different explanation for the non-renewal. “The decision was made for business reasons related to operational and campus compliance matters,” Holmes told the New York Post. “Like any landlord, we evaluate renewals based on adherence to lease terms and campus policies.”

The activist organization “Demilitarize Brooklyn Navy Yard” praised the decision, claiming credit for a sustained pressure campaign. “Every single action, every sticker put up, and every letter they [BNY] received contributed to our coordinated effort to evict this fascist weapons manufacturer,” the group posted on social media.

The organization, which employed tactics including “direct action, political education, worker outreach, and deep community organizing,” said the campaign successfully impacted “the supply chains of imperialism, zionism, and fascism.” The group also indicated it would next target Crye Precision, which it claims supplies “genocide and ICE.”

Rep. Elise Stefanik called the move “deeply disturbing” on X, adding: “We need more voices strongly condemning this taxpayer-funded antisemitism from the NYC Mayor’s office.”

New York State Assemblyman Kalman Yeger told the New York Post the decision was “foolish,” stating: “Chasing good jobs out of New York because Mr. Mamdani and his friends hate Jews is probably not a very good economic development program.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)