Boris Johnson condemned for blaming Munich attack on 'global sickness' of Islamist terrorism

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Louise Thomas

Editor

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has been criticised for making rash comments more worthy of 'Have I Got News For You' than high diplomatic office after he prematurely blamed the Munich shootings on Islamist extremists.

Ali Sonboly killed nine people, seven of them children, in a killing rampage starting in a McDonald’s restaurant in Germany on Friday.

At the time of Mr Johnson's remarks, police had already issued a statement saying they had “no indication” the gunman was motivated by Islamic extremism.

But Mr Johnson quicky blamed the massacre in Munich on the “cancer” he said was “being incubated in the Middle East” and the rest of the world.

“If, as seems very likely, this is another terrorist incident, then I think it proves once again that we have a global phenomenon and a global sickness that we have to tackle both at the source – in the areas where the cancer is being incubated in the Middle East – and also of course around the world."

Mr Johnson said the UK needed to address the process of radicalisation. “We have to ask ourselves, what is going on? How is the switch being thrown in the minds of these people?” he said.

The Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson, Tom Brake, responded to Mr Johson’s statement saying it was more appropriate for the TV show 'Have I got News For You' than the mass killings in Munich.

“Just days into his new role, Boris demonstrates again why it was a huge gamble appointing him,” Mr Brake told The Guardian.

“The off-the-cuff remark may suit 'Have I Got News for You', but it doesn’t the tragedy in Munich. In future, Boris needs to hold his tongue until he is in full possession of the facts. There is too much as stake,” he said.

Mr Johnson’s remarks came after the German Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier said the gunman's reasons were not clear.

“The motives for this abhorrent act have not yet been completely clarified - we still have contradictory clues,” he said in a statement.

Since the shooting, in which Sonboly killed himself, it has been discovered the teenager was interested in the neo-Nazi Anders Breivik. German newspaper Bild reported the 18-year-old had a photo of the Oslo murderer, who killed 77 people five years ago, as his Whatsapp messaging picture.

Mr Johnson has faced a barrage of criticism after taking up the position of Foreign Secretary in Theresa May’s cabinet. He was questioned about telling “outright lies” during his time as London Mayor. Mr Johnson said “it would take too long” to apologize for all the things he had said in the past.