A post shared on Facebook claims London mayor Sadiq Khan urged residents to learn Arabic in order to “create harmony” and “to be able to understand the cultures and religions of immigrants.” 

Verdict: False

Khan did not say this, a spokesperson for him told Check Your Fact via email.

Fact Check: 

Khan claimed President-elect Donald Trump’s previous insults were based on Khan’s ethnicity and Muslim faith after he criticized Trump’s travel ban, according to CBS News. Trump said Khan has done a “very bad job on terrorism,” Khan said he takes his comments “incredibly personal,” the outlet reported.

A post shows a headshot of Khan with the text, “‘LEARN ARABIC’ says London Mayor Sadiq Khan. The London Mayor says we should create harmony by speaking and writing in Arabic to be able to understand the cultures and religions of immigrants.” It then says “this was my first attempt” before spelling out an expletive.

The post’s caption reads, “No offence to anyone of my Arabic friend. (sic) How the f**k you want us to learn that tell them to learn English you t**t Sadiq Khan. Mind you I can’t even speak English lol xx.”

This claim is inaccurate, however. The alleged statement cannot be found on Khan’s social media accounts or in any credible news reports. (RELATED: Did London Mayor Sadiq Khan Say He’d ‘Leave The UK’ Following A Trump Election Victory?)

“Those online posts are nonsense,” a Khan spokesperson told Check Your Fact via email. “The Mayor has never said that.”

This is not the first time misinformation involving Khan has spread online. Check Your Fact recently debunked a claim that he said he would leave the UK if Trump won the 2024 US presidential election.