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| What facts are the BNP's Nick Griffin finding on his mission to Syria? | |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| Age: 54. | Age: 54. |
| Appearance: Clean shirt, neat haircut, excess neck. | Appearance: Clean shirt, neat haircut, excess neck. |
| Come now. It's not nice to make personal remarks. Oh, I think he can take it. He's been very mean about Nelson Mandela recently. | Come now. It's not nice to make personal remarks. Oh, I think he can take it. He's been very mean about Nelson Mandela recently. |
| Dare I ask what he said? "No surprise #Mandela's lungs are shot – all those burning tyres. Smoking necklaces very bad for the health." That was a charming tweet of his on Sunday, suggesting that Mandela was responsible for South Africa's gruesome mob lynchings during the 1980s. | Dare I ask what he said? "No surprise #Mandela's lungs are shot – all those burning tyres. Smoking necklaces very bad for the health." That was a charming tweet of his on Sunday, suggesting that Mandela was responsible for South Africa's gruesome mob lynchings during the 1980s. |
| Didn't Mandela only get out of prison – rather famously, if I recall – in 1990? Details, details … Griffin also had a message for you personally. | Didn't Mandela only get out of prison – rather famously, if I recall – in 1990? Details, details … Griffin also had a message for you personally. |
| Oh yes? "Memo to Guardian," it said. "#Mandela led Communist terror campaign & his ANC regime has incited ethnic cleansing murders of thousands of Boer farmers." | Oh yes? "Memo to Guardian," it said. "#Mandela led Communist terror campaign & his ANC regime has incited ethnic cleansing murders of thousands of Boer farmers." |
| Memo to Griffin: #Mandela steered the armed faction of the ANC towards sabotage against government infrastructure instead of violence. A committee of inquiry in 2001 found that 90% of farm attacks were simple robberies. I'll pass that on. Although Griffin may be a bit busy just now. He's in Syria. | Memo to Griffin: #Mandela steered the armed faction of the ANC towards sabotage against government infrastructure instead of violence. A committee of inquiry in 2001 found that 90% of farm attacks were simple robberies. I'll pass that on. Although Griffin may be a bit busy just now. He's in Syria. |
| Syria? Yes, he was invited by President Bashar al-Assad. | Syria? Yes, he was invited by President Bashar al-Assad. |
| Now there's a man with an impeccable human rights record! You're being sarcastic, aren't you? | Now there's a man with an impeccable human rights record! You're being sarcastic, aren't you? |
| I'm glad you noticed. It's what politicians call a fact-finding mission, and the rest of us call "being shown things". | I'm glad you noticed. It's what politicians call a fact-finding mission, and the rest of us call "being shown things". |
| So what facts has Griffin found in Syria? Rather a lot of Muslims about? Presumably, yes. Also that, "Cameron & Hague plan to send UK money & weapons to rebels dominated by Islamist jihadis like killers of Lee Rigby." | So what facts has Griffin found in Syria? Rather a lot of Muslims about? Presumably, yes. Also that, "Cameron & Hague plan to send UK money & weapons to rebels dominated by Islamist jihadis like killers of Lee Rigby." |
| OK. And that life in Damascus is "normal". "Traffic busy, shops full of goods. Families out in sun," he said, on a morning when two suicide bombs exploded. "Why turn stable … secular state into Iraq-style hell of sectarian hate?" | OK. And that life in Damascus is "normal". "Traffic busy, shops full of goods. Families out in sun," he said, on a morning when two suicide bombs exploded. "Why turn stable … secular state into Iraq-style hell of sectarian hate?" |
| Interesting. It's almost as if he's saying exactly what Assad would want him to. Yes, it is very much like that, isn't it? | Interesting. It's almost as if he's saying exactly what Assad would want him to. Yes, it is very much like that, isn't it? |
| Do say: "Go back to where you came from!" | Do say: "Go back to where you came from!" |
| Don't say: "Do you think Assad actually knows who Griffin is?" | Don't say: "Do you think Assad actually knows who Griffin is?" |