BBC News editor Nick Robinson has apologized for initially identifying the London stabbing suspects as having a “Muslim appearance.”
The BBC editor said he was only quoting a senior Whitehall source, who was told by police that the attackers were “of Muslim appearance” and were shouting “Allahu Akbar.”
“That phrase ‘of Muslim appearance’ clearly offended some who demanded to know what it could possibly mean. Others were concerned that it was a racist generalisation,” Mr. Robinson wrote.
“I’m sorry for using a phrase that, on reflection, was both liable to be misinterpreted and to cause offence,” he added. “Many Muslims were quick to condemn the attack and to distance themselves and their religion from the brutal savagery seen on the streets of Woolwich.”
