Somalis respond to Trump's 'unacceptable' outburst against them
Somalis voiced their displeasure on Wednesday to President Donald Trump’s tirade against them, in which he said their country ‘stinks’ and that the US did not want their emigrants.
Somalis responded with resentment on Wednesday to President Donald Trump's tirade against them in which he said their country "stinks" and the US did not want their emigrants.
Trump's heated remarks on Tuesday followed a scandal in the state of Minnesota where prosecutors say around $1 billion had been lost largely through false billing by Somali Americans.
In a cabinet meeting, the US president accused Somali migrants of being ungrateful, saying "we don't want them in our country" and in Somalia "they have no anything."
The Somali government has said nothing about the outburst and did not respond to a request for comment from AFP.
'Unacceptable'
But Somalis in the capital Mogadishu were upset.
"It is not the first time that President Trump spoke negatively about Somalia and the Somali people, but this time his offences are unacceptable. It is high time that the Somali government breaks its silence and tells Trump to stop insulting Somalia," Daud Bare, a grocer in the city's Waberi district, told AFP.
Sumaya Hassan Ali, a 23-year-old university student, said Trump's comments were "rude."
"Every country has its own faults, even America," she said. "
"The US government is supporting Somalia in the fight against what they call terrorism. If the federal government irritates Trump, he may not hesitate to withdraw the US government support as he did before," said university lecturer Mahdi Ibrahim.