'I Want To Kill Muslims': After London Attack on Worshipers, Trump's Silence Deafening
At least one reported dead and ten injured outside mosque, but President Donald Trump makes no time to condemn anti-Muslim violence
Muslims pray on the pavement in the Finsbury Park area of north London after a vehicle hit pedestrians earely Monday morning. (Photo: AFP)
As of mid-Monday morning, U.S. President Donald Trump has yet to respond, via his prolific Twitter account or by any other means, since a man slammed his car into a crowd of Muslim worshipers just after midnight.
Trump hasn't *yet* commented on London attack. Follows a pattern of early silence on violence v muslims.
-Quebec
-Portland— Katy Tur (@KatyTurNBC) June 19, 2017
In an attack British law enforcement are treating as "terrorism," a 48-year-old white man in London plowed his van into a group Muslim worshipers outside a mosque early Monday, killing one and injuring at least ten others.
Citing witnesses, the Guardian reports that after deliberately targeting pedestrians, the driver "got out of the van and shouted 'I want to kill Muslims' before onlookers pinned him to the ground." The man was held until police arrived and Sky News reports that it was the mosque's imam who prevented some in the tense and angry crowd from beating the man.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan condemned the violence as "a horrific terrorist attack on innocent people. We don't yet know the full details, but this was clearly a deliberate attack on innocent Londoners, many of whom were finishing prayers during the holy month of Ramadan."
Associated Press video:
London has seen an uptick in violent politically-motivated attacks in recent months, including a bombing outside a pop concert in Manchester on May 22 that killed twenty-two people and an attack in London by three Islamic extremists earlier this month in which the perpetrators used both a van and then knives to kill eight people and injure many others.
Though Trump was quick to denounce those earlier attacks, on Monday morning—with the targets and victims Muslim and the alleged assailant a white male—the president found better things to do with his Twitter account. Though hours had gone by since the attack, Trump first promoted an appearance by his lawyer on Fox News (that tweet was later deleted) and then he lashed out at Democrats for blocking his agenda.
The Dems want to stop tax cuts, good healthcare and Border Security.Their ObamaCare is dead with 100% increases in P's. Vote now for Karen H
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2017
Trump seems to have deleted this tweet plugging his lawyer's appearance on Fox. pic.twitter.com/DeLX94b8JE
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) June 19, 2017