WATCH: Obama's blistering attack on Donald Trump over Muslim comments
Barack Obama on Tuesday gave a blistering speech against Donald Trump for his comments over the massacre of 49 people at an Orlando gay night club.
Trump, the Republican presidential hopeful, reiterated his call for a ban on Muslims entering the US, implied Muslim Americans knew in advance about terrorist attacks, and called on the US president to resign over Orlando.
In response, the US president said: “We hear language that singles out immigrants and suggests entire religious communities are complicit in violence. Where does this stop?”
Obama emphasised that Trump’s proposed ban on Muslims entering the US fell flat on its face - the massacre in Orlando, and previous attacks in San Bernardino and Fort Hood, were all perpetrated by American citizens.
“Are we going to start treating all Muslim-Americans differently? Are we going to start subjecting them to special surveillance? Are we going to start discriminating against them because of their faith?” Obama said, exasperated.
“Do Republican officials actually agree with this? Because that’s not the America we want - it doesn’t reflect our democratic ideals. It won’t make us more safe. It will make us less safe.”
The president also rejected calls by Republicans to use the phrase "radical Islam" to describe the Islamic State group, saying it was a political distraction.
Middle East Eye propose une couverture et une analyse indépendantes et incomparables du Moyen-Orient, de l’Afrique du Nord et d’autres régions du monde. Pour en savoir plus sur la reprise de ce contenu et les frais qui s’appliquent, veuillez remplir ce formulaire [en anglais]. Pour en savoir plus sur MEE, cliquez ici [en anglais].