London Mayor Sadiq Khan writes: Corona spreads disease and extremism as well

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said that the Corona pandemic had created a fertile environment for hatred and discrimination, and that extremists from various walks of life had made the Internet space a battleground for recruiting weak souls and disaffected to exploit religion and patriotism to serve their deadly goals.

In an article for The Independent newspaper, Khan pointed out that the general closure to reduce the spread of the epidemic contributed to the decline in the level of crime, but it produced a disturbing reality in some areas, including the growing phenomenon of extremism.

He said that the recent terrible attacks in Reading and Stretham, Britain, are the latest evidence that the threat of terrorism still exists, in addition to the extremist right's efforts to kidnap the "Black Life Movement" mission, and the constant threat posed by the Islamic State known as "ISIS" and extremist groups. Like him, all of this is a stark reminder that extremism still represents a real threat to our societies.

Severe anxiety

Khan expressed his deep concern about the growing phenomenon of extremism, stressing that it should be a source of concern for the government of his country as well, and said that a recent report issued by the Committee to Combat Extremism highlighted the urgent need to make more efforts to stop those seeking to sow division and undermine the social fabric in the United Kingdom .

"We need government support to tackle this national problem, which is the biggest threat to our country," he added.

Khan considered that the first step that the British government should take regarding the problem of extremism is to recognize the urgent nature of the situation, as there are those who take advantage of the current crisis resulting from the Corona pandemic to spread feelings of hatred and intolerance against the ethnic and religious minorities in the country, and cultivate extremism among the weak souls to serve their twisted goals.

He also urged the authorities to allocate significant resources to address the phenomenon of extremism in various parts of the country and assist societies in overcoming it, highlighting his efforts to address the problem of extremism in the London municipality.

The mayor concluded by stressing that it is urgent for the government to intervene and make more efforts to prevent the rapid spread of extremism, in light of the high cunning voices targeting the most vulnerable groups in society, and everyone should work to stop these voices and save people's lives.