U.K. leader Sunak criticises lawmaker’s attack on London’s mayor and denies his party is anti-Muslim

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that a Conservative lawmaker was wrong to say the mayor of London is controlled by Islamists

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on February 26 that a Conservative lawmaker was wrong to say the mayor of London is controlled by Islamists, and also denied that the governing party tolerates anti-Muslim prejudice.

Mr. Sunak is under pressure to condemn Islamophobia after the comments by Lee Anderson, who was suspended from the Conservative Party group in parliament on Saturday for comments about Mayor Sadiq Khan, amid growing tensions within British politics over the Israel-Hamas war.

Mr. Anderson, a pugnacious populist, claimed Islamists had “got control” of Mr. Khan and the city of London. Mr. Khan is Muslim, and a member of the opposition Labour Party.

“These comments were o’t acceptable, they were wrong,” Mr. Sunak told BBC radio on Monday. “Words matter, especially in the current environment where tensions are running high and I think it’s incumbent on all of us to choose them carefully.”

Asked whether his party has an Islamophobia problem, Mr. Sunak said: “No, of course it does not.’”

Opponents accused the Conservatives of deliberately raising tensions over pro-Palestinian protests that have been held most weekends since the Israel-Hamas conflict began in October. Mr. Sunak fired former Home Secretary Suella Braverman in November after she called the protests, which have drawn hundreds of thousands of demonstrators, “hate marches” and accused police of being too lenient with them.

The protests have been overwhelmingly peaceful, though there have been several dozen arrests over signs and chants allegedly supporting Hamas, a banned organisation in Britain. Some people also say the mass marches have created an intimidating atmosphere for Jewish Londoners.