Diane Abbott accused of ‘exploiting tragedy’ in now-deleted tweet over migrant deaths
Diane Abbott has been accused of exploiting the deaths of 41 migrants in a shipwreck off Italy in a now-deleted tweet about the tragedy.
The MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, who is currently suspended from the parliamentary Labour Party, tweeted a link to an article about the deaths earlier today, and wrote: “These migrants have indeed f***** off. To the bottom of the sea.”
Ms Abbott sent the tweet at 3.33pm, and it was deleted just over an hour later.
Forty-one migrants were killed in the shipwreck off the island of Lampedusa in Italy after a large wave apparently flipped the vessel. There were only four survivors.
The tweet was deleted after just over an hour
The former shadow home secretary’s comments came off the back of Conservative deputy chairman Lee Anderson’s controversial remark to Express.co.uk on Monday evening – that if migrants do not want to be housed on a barge, they should “f*** off back to France”.
Ms Abbott had responded to Mr Anderson’s remark yesterday, calling them a “new low even for the Tories”, to which he replied that he had told “illegal migrants to go back to France not genuine asylum seekers”.
However, today’s comment provoked an immediate backlash from X (formerly called Twitter) users, and the Tory MP for Bassetlaw, Brendan Clarke-Smith, accused her and the Labour Party of “exploiting the tragedy” for political gain.
Tory MP Brendan Clarke-Smith
He wrote: “And to think that Sir Keir Starmer campaigned for this person to be made our home secretary.
“We all know that you can’t take Labour seriously on immigration or national security, but what a shame they also seek to exploit tragedies like this to push their warped agenda.”
Mr Clarke-Smith’s response was endorsed by the Conservative Party when approached for comment.
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Who is Diane Abbott?
Ms Abbott currently sits as an independent MP after having had the whip suspended in April following remarks in which she suggested Jewish people do not face racism, but instead suffer prejudice similar to “redheads”.
She wrote a letter to The Observer newspaper, in response to an article which had the headline: “Racism in Britain is not black and white. It’s far more complicated.”
The Hackney North and Stoke Newington MP said she was responding to writer Tomiwa Owolade’s claims that “Irish, Jewish and Traveller people all suffer from ‘racism'”.
The Labour Party called her comments “deeply offensive and wrong” and suspended her pending an investigation.
Ms Abbott and the Labour Party have been approached for comment.
A woman who was stabbed to death in north London has been named by police – as a man was arrested on suspicion of murder.
Pamela Munro, 45, was found with a stab wound and died at the scene in Ayley Croft, Enfield, on Saturday evening, the Metropolitan Police said.
A 29-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder on Monday and is in custody, the force added.
Detective Chief Inspector Neil John said: “Investigating officers have worked relentlessly across the weekend to investigate the circumstances around Pamela’s death.
“We continue to support her family who are understandably devastated.”
Police at the scene at Ayley Croft in Enfield
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The Met Police has asked anyone with information or who was driving through Ayley Court between 6.30pm and 7.30pm on Saturday and may have dashcam footage to contact the force.
A “British man” has died after being beaten and set on fire by a mob in Ecuador, according to reports by media in the South American country.
According to reports, the man – who has not been officially identified – had been detained by police after being accused of being involved in a fatal shooting.
Ecuadorian news outlet Ecuavisa reported that the man had been taken to a police station Playas del Cuyabeno, a remote village in the Amazon rainforest.
While there, a group broke into the station and took the man away. He was then set on fire in the street, it is reported, and died from his burns.
The incident reportedly happened in the Playas del Cuyabeno area of Sucumbios province
Another local report, from EXTRA.ec, said that specialist police units had been slow to arrive due to the geographical conditions of the area – which is accessible by river.
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According to reports, police officers at the station apparently decided they could not intervene when the mob arrived out of concerns for their own safety.
It is understood the UK Foreign Office is following up reports about the incident and working with local authorities to confirm the details.
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