Former President Donald Trump feels that London and Paris have become “unrecognizable” after the cities “opened their doors to jihad” via Mediaite.
While speaking at a Wisconsin rally on Wednesday, Trump slammed European immigration policies and promised he would not allow the same in the United States if he wins the upcoming 2024 presidential election.
“We’ve seen what happened when Europe opened their doors to jihad. Look at Paris. Look at London. They’re no longer recognisable,” Trump said. “And I’m going to get myself into a lot of trouble with the folks in Paris and the folks in London. But you know what? That’s the fact. They are no longer recognisable.”
He continued: “And we can’t let that happen to our country. We have incredible culture, tradition… Nothing wrong with their culture, their tradition. We can’t let that happen here, and I’ll never let it happen to the United States of America.”
Trump’s rhetoric is a repetition of talking points which he used on the 2016 presidential campaign trail when he said that Londoners had become “so radicalised that the police are afraid for their own lives.”
The comments came just one day ahead of London’s mayoral election on Thursday, the run-up to which has seen Mayor Sadiq Khan face a firestorm of extreme accusations.
In February, former Tory deputy chair Lee Anderson said Khan was under the influence of “Islamists” and urged Londoners to “vote him out.” Remarks he was subsequently suspended for by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and defected to Reform UK.
Meanwhile, Conservative mayoral candidate Susan Hall has repeatedly claimed that under Khan violent crime in the city has increased and Londoners were “under siege.”
The Guardian has analysed data and found that despite some attempts to exploit crime for political purposes, an individual is actually less likely to become a victim of crime in London compared to the rest of the country. In fact, London has one of the lowest rates of antisocial behaviour and a decreasing murder rate.
