Trump misspells both Sadiq Khan's names in angry attack over criticism for golfing during deadly hurricane

The president erupts in his latest tirade against the London mayor following criticism of his decision to play golf rather than deal with the hurricane crisis or mark the anniversary of the start of the Second World War

Donald Trump has launched a fresh attack on London mayor Sadiq Khan - while spelling both of his names incorrectly - after being criticised for playing golf while a deadly hurricane approached the US.

The president lashed out in the latest round of a longstanding feud between the pair, tweeting: "The incompetent Mayor of London, Sadique Kahn, was bothered that I played a very fast round of golf yesterday. Many Pols exercise for hours, or travel for weeks. Me, I run through one of my courses (very inexpensive).

"President Obama would fly to Hawaii. Kahn should focus on.... ....”knife crime,” which is totally out of control in London. People are afraid to even walk the streets. He is a terrible mayor who should stay out of our business!"

He or an aide later corrected the spelling of Mr Khan's first and second names.

Mr Trump had cancelled a trip to Poland at the weekend to join commemorations for the 80th anniversary of the Nazi invasion, which sparked the Second World War. He said he needed to stay in the US to help deal with the impending arrival of Hurricane Dorian - but was soon spotted taking to the course at his Virginia golf club.

Mr Khan, who did travel to Poland, mocked the decision, telling Politico: "He's clearly busy dealing with a hurricane out on the golf course."

The London mayor also criticised the president's more everyday behaviour, saying that Mr Trump “is a guy who amplifies racist tweets; amplifies the tweets of fascists; says things that are deeply objectionable. If I don’t stand up and call that out I think I’m doing a disservice to Londoners who chose me as their mayor."

The president and Mr Khan have been at odds since Mr Trump's candidacy, when the then-candidate suggested banning Muslims from travelling to America. Mr Khan, London's first Muslim mayor, called the president's views "ignorant".

Mr Trump has also fixated on London's knife crime before. Ahead of the president's June visit to the UK, Mr Trump called Mr Khan a "stone-cold loser," which the London mayor dismissed, and again mentioned the city's crime.

The city indeed saw a violent summer, including several knife-related deaths, but according to numbers from 2017 and 2018, London's homicide rate is significantly lower than most major US cities.

The tweet is also particularly ironic as the US saw yet another weekend of gun violence throughout the nation, with shootings in Alabama and Texas. In August alone, 53 people died from mass shootings across the country.

The president has brushed off each of the shootings that have made major headlines, including the hate crime in El Paso, Texas, as mental health issues, in keeping with the National Rifle Association's goals.

Like most Republicans, the president's election efforts are heavily funded by the powerful organisation, and therefore at odds with the general public, which, according to polls, is in favour of stricter gun laws in the wake of the national epidemic.

Mr Khan's office has focused on knife crime and recovering weapons, as well as mental health and community support programmes, in light of his own city's problems, creating a stark contrast.

The morning's tweets are in line, however, with Mr Trump's established pattern of attacking minorities in leadership positions, including the mayor of San Juan, and the four women in congress known as the "squad", whom he recently told to "go home", despite all four of them being US citizens and all but one of them having been born in the United States.