Johnson’s loose lips land him in hot water again
BRITAIN: Boris Johnson is facing calls for his sacking after saying a Libyan city could become the next Dubai once it had cleared the dead bodies away, in the latest gaffe by Britain’s top diplomat.
A fellow Conservative MP said the foreign secretary’s comments were ‘‘100 per cent unacceptable’’ and insisted he must lose his job.
His Labour counterpart, Emily Thornberry, said the remarks were ‘‘unbelievably crass, callous and cruel’’.
Johnson, who has offended some allies with his flippant remarks, was at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester yesterday when he was asked about his recent visit to Libya, which has been racked by violence since the fall of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
‘‘They’ve got a brilliant vision to turn Sirte, with the help of the municipality of Sirte, to turn it into the next Dubai,’’ Johnson said. ‘‘The only thing they’ve got to do is clear the dead bodies away and then we will be there.’’
Some activists from Prime Minister Theresa May’s party laughed at the joke before the chair of the event changed the subject, saying: ‘‘Next question.’’
Britain and France took a leading role in the attacks that helped rebels overthrow Gaddafi. Islamic State took over Sirte in early 2015, attracting large numbers of foreign fighters into the city. It was later cleared of the militants.
Tory MP Heidi Allen tweeted: ‘‘100% unacceptable from anyone, let alone foreign sec. Boris must be sacked for this. He does not represent my party.’’
Thornberry said: ‘‘There comes a time when the buffoonery needs to stop, because if Boris Johnson thinks the bodies of those brave government soldiers and innocent civilians killed in Sirte are a suitable subject for throwaway humour, he does not belong in the office of foreign secretary.’’
Johnson committed the gaffe after swearing his allegiance to May. After openly defying his boss over Brexit in the leadup to the conference, he put on a display of loyalty in a speech to party faithful.
The foreign secretary rallied his Tory supporters, most of whom backed leaving the European Union, with a speech peppered with coded swipes at those pressing for a ‘‘soft’’ Brexit.
Johnson has withdrawn some of the public demands he set out on May’s Brexit position, after his second show of disloyalty in two weeks contributed to growing calls for his dismissal.
He professed loyalty to the prime minister, praising her ‘‘steadfastness’’ and saying she won the election. He insisted that the cabinet was united behind the Brexit approach that May set out in a recent speech in Florence.