US President Donald Trump criticized London Mayor Sadiq Khan, calling him a “disaster”. He went on to claim that London had become so dangerous that “people are being stabbed in the ass”.
Speaking to GB News, the US president told presenter Bev Turner that his mother once loved the city, but claimed things had changed under the Labor mayor.
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Trump claimed that there are now areas in London that even the police avoid. Despite offering no call for American gun violence, Trump criticized Khan, calling him a “terrible, terrible mayor”.
The 55-year-old Labor politician of Pakistani origin made history in May last year by becoming the first to be elected mayor of London for a third consecutive term.
This comes amid his ongoing feud with Trump, who has often targeted Khan, calling him the “worst” mayor in the world. In return, Khan accused Trump of being “racist, sexist, misogynistic and Islamophobic.”
Khan, who has been mayor of London since 2016, has clashed with Trump since the president’s 2015 campaign promise to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. In July, Trump commented that Khan had “done a terrible job” and described him as a “nasty person.”
Who is Sadiq Khan?
Sadiq Aman Khan is a British politician who has served as Mayor of London since May 2016, making him the first Muslim mayor of a major Western capital.
The Labor Party member was re-elected in 2021 and again in May 2024, defeating Conservative candidate Susan Hall in the first round with 43.8% of the vote.
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Khan was born in Tooting, south London, to a working-class Pakistani immigrant family, the fifth of eight children. His father was a bus driver and his mother a seamstress. He studied law at the University of North London and qualified as a human rights lawyer specializing in police misconduct cases.
Between 1994 and 2006, he ran a successful legal practice and chaired the human rights organization Liberty (2000–2004).
Why is Khan being criticized in London?
Khan’s handling of crime, particularly violent crime, has been the focus of criticism, particularly from the conservative opposition, where he is accused of allowing a significant rise in crime since 2016.
ULEZ’s expansion has faced strong opposition and legal challenges, while its handling of crime, particularly knife crime, has drawn criticism despite falling homicides in recent years.
On the other hand, as mayor, Khan has focused on affordable housing (promising 40,000 council homes by 2030), freezing fares in London (2016–2024), expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) across the city in 2023 to reduce air pollution, and introducing Hopper and Night Tube bus fares.
(With input from agencies)
