Donald Trump has said “London needs a new mayor” in response to a spate of violence which left three people dead after separate incidents across the capital.
The US president – who has long criticised Sadiq Khan, the capital’s Labour leader – shared comments about the crimes by controversial media personality Katie Hopkins.
Hopkins wrote in a tweet on Saturday evening that the three deaths were indicative of London under Khan’s mayoralty.
“This is Khan’s Londonistan,” she wrote. Trump re-tweeted her post, adding: “LONDON needs a new mayor ASAP. Khan is a disaster - will only get worse!”
Trump later returned to Twitter, writing: “He is a national disgrace who is destroying the City of London!”
The president was responding to a Twitter user who said: “Khan is the reason I don’t feel like visiting London anytime soon.”
A spokesman for the mayor said: “Sadiq is focusing on supporting London’s communities and over-stretched emergency services.
“He has been in regular touch with senior Met police officers last night and throughout the day.
“His thoughts are with the victims’ families. He is not going to waste his time responding to this sort of tweet.”
Trump’s tweets came after incidents across London that saw:
- a teenage boy shot dead in Plumstead, south-east London on Friday;
- another teenage boy fatally stabbed in Wandsworth, south-west London on Friday;
- and a man fatally stabbed in Tower Hamlets, east London on Saturday.
Three men were also injured after being stabbed in a separate attack during a weekend of violence in the capital.
Speaking before the third death on Saturday, Khan said he was “sickened” following the deaths of the two teenage boys.
Khan said: “I am sickened to hear that two young lives have been ended within minutes of each other in Wandsworth and Greenwich.
“Our overstretched police are working around the clock to keep Londoners safe. They need our support to end this scourge of violence.
“Anybody who has information about what happened either in Wandsworth or Greenwich should do the right thing and call the police.”
In a statement, the Met said “bearing down on violent crime” in the capital remains “their top priority” but appealed to the public for information about people carrying knives.
The force added: “Teams across the city are working tirelessly – day and night – to identify and pursue offenders, help bring perpetrators to justice, take weapons off the street, support victims, engage and reassure the public, and keep our communities safe.
“However, the police cannot solve this problem alone. The police, our partners and the public must work together to deal with knife crime and prevent further lives being lost.
“Communities have a vital role to play in tackling violent crime. We want to hear from anyone who may have information about people who may carry knives or firearms, or who are involved in organised drug crime and violence.”
The Met said a number of people had been arrested as part of investigations into the violent incidents, which were not believed to be linked.
Trump and Khan have clashed in the past, including on Trump’s state visit at the start of June.
Trump branded the mayor a “stone cold loser” in a two-part tweet as he touched down in Britain on June 3.
The Labour mayor then accused the president of “playground behaviour” and claimed he was a “poster boy” for the far-right.