London mayor Sadiq Khan told reporters that diversity is one of the British capital’s strengths in the wake of the London Bridge attack, and that all great cities are targets for terrorists.
“Look, I’m mayor of the greatest city in the world, and one of our strengths is our diversity,” he told reporters shortly the attack by Usman Khan, a convicted radical Islamic terrorist who had been freed from prison on a tag after serving less than half of a 16-year term, which left two dead and three injured.
“But we do know there are people out there who hate out diversity, hate what we stand for, and are trying to seek to divide us”, he added — although his grounds for appearing to suggest that terrorists despise Britain for being diverse were unclear.
Mayor Khan then flirted with controversy with a statement echoing an earlier, infamous former claim of his with respect to terror attacks — i.e. that “part and parcel of living in a great global city is you’ve got to be prepared for these things” — by telling reporters: “Look, I know, speaking to colleagues around the world, mayors of other great cities, that we’re all targets for terrorists.”
Karmelo Anthony fights for new trial as lawyers clash over unwritten deal that shaped case
Top JPMorganChase exec warns regulatory proposal could squeeze credit for millions of small businesses
AOC blasted as too moderate by Maoist DSA faction as 2028 buzz grows
Trump reaches deal to halt tariffs on beef for 90 days in bid to lower prices
Videos show three suspects in shooting death of Tucson police recruit Carlos Ramirez
Watch: Latest Physical Attack on Caitlin Clark Is So Outrageous Commentator Uses Football Term to Describe It
Professor Who Flagged Jason Arday Cambridge Cheating Scandal Suspended: ‘They Will Almost Certainly Fire Me’
Budget red ink threatens to spike inflation and unemployment
EXCLUSIVE: Fentanyl deaths plunge 22% as Trump White House touts crackdown on deadly drug crisis
Singham-linked nonprofits fight House subpoenas, accuse lawmakers of McCarthy-era ‘witch hunt’
Blue wave depth will be tested in a GOP-friendly Virginia House district
Recalling a political analyst whose insight would have risen above the midterm elections din
Virginia Democrat bought second home outside of her congressional district after promising to relocate
Longest-serving US prisoner dies at 101 after escaping death penalty 8 times
Charter plane crashes near remote radar site in western Alaska, killing all 8 aboard
Some critics of the Mayor of London have suggested that such attacks only appear to be a feature of life in cities such as London, while in a relatively homogenous place like the Japanese capital of Tokyo they are exceedingly rare — although not entirely unknown.
London Bridge killer Usman Khan was a convicted terrorist released from prison after judges changed his "public protection" sentence. Public protection sentences were scrapped by the Tories and deemed unlawful in a European court ruling. https://t.co/p5wfe2BhUK
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) November 30, 2019
Mayor Khan went on to say that London would have suffered even more deadly terror attacks like the one perpetrated by Usman Khan if not for the efforts of the authorities, confirming that “since the four terror incidents in 2017, because of the excellent work that police and the security services and because of the intelligence provided by members of the public, we’ve thwarted more than twenty attempts at terrorism on innocent citizens”.
Karmelo Anthony fights for new trial as lawyers clash over unwritten deal that shaped case
Top JPMorganChase exec warns regulatory proposal could squeeze credit for millions of small businesses
AOC blasted as too moderate by Maoist DSA faction as 2028 buzz grows
Trump reaches deal to halt tariffs on beef for 90 days in bid to lower prices
Videos show three suspects in shooting death of Tucson police recruit Carlos Ramirez
Watch: Latest Physical Attack on Caitlin Clark Is So Outrageous Commentator Uses Football Term to Describe It
Professor Who Flagged Jason Arday Cambridge Cheating Scandal Suspended: ‘They Will Almost Certainly Fire Me’
Budget red ink threatens to spike inflation and unemployment
EXCLUSIVE: Fentanyl deaths plunge 22% as Trump White House touts crackdown on deadly drug crisis
Singham-linked nonprofits fight House subpoenas, accuse lawmakers of McCarthy-era ‘witch hunt’
Blue wave depth will be tested in a GOP-friendly Virginia House district
Recalling a political analyst whose insight would have risen above the midterm elections din
Virginia Democrat bought second home outside of her congressional district after promising to relocate
Longest-serving US prisoner dies at 101 after escaping death penalty 8 times
Charter plane crashes near remote radar site in western Alaska, killing all 8 aboard
“[W]hat’s really important is we all remain vigilant,” he warned, adding that “If anyone sees anything suspicious please report it to the police. Err on the side of caution, I’d rather people overreport to the police and the experts than under-report,” he said.
The Labour politician also praised the heroism of the have-a-go heroes who tackled Usman Khan armed with nothing but their bare hands, a fire extinguisher, and a narwhal tusk, as well as the emergency services, saying that “What was amazing about today, was we saw in one individual, the suspect, the worst of humanity, but we also saw in the response from members of the public but also our emergency services the very vest of humanity.”
“[T]he message I want to send… is we are resolute, we stand united in the face of terrorism, and we will not allow anybody to divide us,” he insisted.
The footage of bystanders – one armed with a fire-extinguisher and a Polish chef with a narwhal tusk – tackling the London Bridge attacker is simply remarkable. Incredible courage. https://t.co/a85D6Up7JA
— Richard Chambers (@newschambers) November 30, 2019
Story cited here.
