The Office for National Statistics (ONS) in the U.K. released data on Wednesday which revealed a 13 percent increase in recorded crimes in the U.K. U.S. President Donald Trump swiftly headed to Twitter on Friday morning to blame this increase on crime on “radical Islamic Terror.” This claim comes despite any evidence to that fact and as noted by the Guardian, also despite the fact annual figures include every offense recorded by police.

Trump blames Islamic terror on increase in crime

The data released Wednesday showed a 13 percent annual rise in those recorded crimes, including an increase in knife crime, which rises each year by 26 percent.

There was also a 19 percent increase in sex-related crimes.

According to the report, 35 of the 664 homicides recorded in the U.K. in the year ending in June related to the Manchester and London attacks which means only five percent of those murders are related to terror. Officials attributed the increase in violent crimes to new recording categories that have been introduced, including “stalking and harassment” and “violence without injury.” Crime Minister Sarah Newton commented on the increase by saying much of the recorded violent crime was due to greater accuracy in reporting.

Terrorism has little impact on crime figures in the U.K.

The report barely mentions terrorism as having any impact on the figures, other than to refer on one occasion to the impact the terror attacks had on the murder rate.

Thirty-five people were killed in the incidents in London and Manchester.

However, John Flatley of the ONS said in a statement that improvements in recording crime by police forces is definitely a factor, but he did add there has also been a genuine increase in crime, especially in the lower incidence, but more harmful categories of crime.

Despite a slight disagreement in the results, neither party went on to suggest that Islamic radicals had anything to do with the increase in the recorded crime figures.

Trump couldn’t resist sending a tweet early this morning, speaking of the 13 percent rise in crime “amid spread of Radical Islamic terror.” He went on to add this was not good and that they must keep “America safe.”

This isn’t the first time Trump has tried to use U.K. terror attacks as a means to introduce tougher immigration measures. After the September Parsons Green bomb attack in London, the U.S. President used the terror incident to push his desire for a larger and tougher travel ban in the U.S.
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