Donald Trump blasted by London Mayor Sadiq Khan as he reignites bitter feud
Sadiq Khan has slammed Donald Trump’s ‘gratuitously offensive’ threats against Iran – and said Israel/US action needs calling out like Vladimir Putin’s action in Ukraine
Sadiq Khan has slammed Donald Trump’s “gratuitously offensive” threats against Iran – and suggested he needs calling out like Vladimir Putin.
The London Mayor said potential unlawful action by the US and Israel in the Middle East needs to be criticised in the same way as Russia ’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.
The Labour politician – who has a long running feud with Mr Trump – criticised the US President threatening “a whole civilisation will die” unless Tehran met his demands. Mr Trump has since stepped back from the brink after an 11th-hour ceasefire deal.
Asked what he thought about Mr Trump’s warning to Iran, Sir Sadiq told The Mirror : “I think it’s, frankly, gratuitously offensive for the leader of the free world to talk about a civilization in this way.
READ MORE: Keir Starmer and world leaders urge Israel to stop Lebanon assault after Iran ceasefire
“And actually, for those that understand history, arguably, Iran is the cradle of civilization, but also, I’m not sure why he needs to be so offensive to the followers of the religion of Islam the way he does, that is not the way to have a sustainable, permanent ceasefire. That is not the way to bring people together – and I think that’s one of the responsibilities, being the leader of the free world.
“I hope this president, at some stage, will realise the responsibility that comes with being the President of the United States of America.”
Mr Trump was accused of mocking Islam in a sweary rant that referred to Allah over the weekend. He said: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F****n’ Strait, you crazy b******s, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.”
Sir Sadiq also said joint US/ Israeli action in the region needed to be called out, as he questioned whether attacks on civilian infrastructure were lawful. “I worry about what’s happening to people in the Middle East, whether it’s the UAE, whether it’s Kuwait, whether it’s Bahrain, whether it’s Lebanon, we’ve got to be supporting our allies there, he said.
“But also, I think there needs to be a permanent ceasefire, both in Lebanon and in Iran. It can’t be right, surely, for innocent people to be losing their lives.
“But also, it can’t be lawful, surely for civilian infrastructure to be attacked in the way the US is doing. We called it out when Russia did it in Ukraine. We’ve got to call it out when the USA and Israel does it in Iran.”
It comes as Keir Starmer and world leaders demanded Israel end its assault on Lebanon as they called for the US-Iran ceasefire to be permanent. Mr Trump walked back from his apocalyptic threats overnight and agreed to a two-week ceasefire just hours before his deadline for Iran to make a deal expired.
Despite the ceasefire, Israel has continued to bombard Lebanon where it is battling Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militant group.
