Donald Trump’s call for a ban on Muslims entering the United States prompted howls of protest around the world from national leaders and ordinary citizens alike. British citizens have gone so far as to demand a ban of the man himself in the United Kingdom.
Here are a few of the actions and reactions to Trump’s anti Muslim remark from around the world:
The White House: The White House challenged Republicans to denounce their party's presidential frontrunner Donald Trump, claiming his proposal to ban Muslims from travelling to the US should disqualify him from being commander-in-chief.
American Muslims: Muslim Americans responded with a mix of frustration, exasperation and anger to what many see as a growing wave of Islamophobia fuelled by two of the Republican Party's most popular presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Ben Carson.
David Cameron: Britain’s conservative Prime Minister David Cameron said in a statement that he “completely disagrees” with Trump’s comments and regards them as “divisive, unhelpful and quite simply wrong”.
Emirati business magnate, Khalaf al-Habtoor: It was only months ago that he proclaimed his support for the Republican hopeful, but that has all changed in the wake of Trump’s increasingly incendiary comments about Islam. Al-Habtoor said, “If he comes to my office, I will not let him in. I reject him. Maybe we can meet somewhere where I can debate with him in a very civilized way, not in the way he approaches people.”
British citizens: A record 450,000 people have signed a petition on the British government website calling for him to be banned from the UK.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar: On being asked by an American reporter to respond to Trump's comments in the aftermath of the California shooting, Parrikar said the question has the "potential of a nuclear bomb" but did not give a clear response to what he thought of the remarks.
Zac Goldsmith, conservative candidate for London mayor: Goldsmith called the American business tycoon “an utterly repellent figure” and “one of the most malignant figures in politics”.
Canadian government: In an unusual move, the Canadian government, which usually refrains from commenting on foreign election campaigns, joined the chorus of those criticising Trump. “It’s something that we can’t accept in Canada ... We have never been as far removed from what we’ve just heard in the United States,” foreign affairs minister Stephane Dion said.
Israel’s left-leaning newspaper columnist: Chemi Shalev said the remarks “must have delighted the Caliph, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi”, the leader of ISIS.
Boxer, Muhammad Ali: Muhammad Ali, the Muslim former boxing world champion, said: "I believe that our political leaders should use their position to bring understanding about the religion of Islam."
While Twitter took to comparing Trump to Hitler:
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