US President Donald Trump’s travel ban is ‘propaganda’ tool for ISIL: UK Home Secretary Amber Rudd

UK Home Secretary Amber Rudd speaking at Parliament, London, January, 31, 2017.

US President Donald Trump’s entry ban against seven Muslim countries serves as a “propaganda opportunity” for Daesh (ISIL) and other terrorists groups, warns UK Home Secretary Amber Rudd.

Speaking before the Parliament’s Home Affairs Committee on Tuesday, Rudd said London would never adopt policies that would facilitate efforts by Daesh “to radicalize” people.

“ISIL and Daesh will use any opportunity they can to make difficulties, to create the environment they want, to radicalize people, to bring them over to their side, so it is a propaganda opportunity for them potentially,” she said.

On Friday, Trump signed an executive order that halted all refugee admissions for four months, banned Syrian refugees indefinitely and barred visitors and immigrants from Iran, Libya, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entering America for 90 days.

US President Donald Trump (Photo by AFP)

Rudd, who was answering the committee’s questions about the consequences of Britain leaving the European Union, or Brexit, said the UK's security challenges came from inside rather than the countries that were singled out by Trump

“I would observe that the difficulties to the UK are not caused by people coming from those countries but from people being radicalized over here,” she argued.

Describing the ban as “divisive and wrong,” Rudd said she had raised the issue with US Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson over the phone and that she was planning to further discuss the issue in their upcoming meeting.

Yvette Cooper, the committee’s chairwoman, was not impressed with Rudd’s explanations and accused her of only addressing the public outrage over the ban.

People hold up placards to protest against Donald Trump's Muslim ban entry into the US, during a rally near the US embassy in Tokyo, January 31, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

The British government has come under fire for refusing to criticize the Trump administration. Prime Minister Theresa May has come under pressure to scrap Trump’s planned state to the country.

The UK Parliament said Wednesday that it would debate the visit after an online petition gained the support of over 1.6 million Britons in a few days.

Rudd defended the decision to grant Trump the state visit.

“It is also honoring the country. The US is our strongest ally,” she argued.

The Parliament would also review a rival petition signed by over 100,000 people, which supports the visit.