Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire has sharply rebuked Donald Trump after the US president claimed during a podcast interview that sharia law had become “almost like a second way of life” in the French capital.
Grrégoire, a member of France’s Socialist Party, took to X on Thursday to reject Trump’s comments, drawing a direct parallel between the Republican leader’s rhetoric and the controversial tactics of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“Paris has no lessons to receive from a head of state who deploys racist militias to hunt down those who make his country live,” Grégoire wrote, referencing ICE’s aggressive deportation operations. He added: “Paris, London, New York, world cities, proud cities.”
Trump’s Sharia Claims Spark Transatlantic Backlash
The clash stems from Trump’s appearance on the conservative podcast The Glenn Beck Program, where he vowed to “absolutely ban” sharia in the United States before turning his attention to Europe.
“I would absolutely ban sharia, and it’s in this country to a certain extent. And where we see it, we remove it,” Trump said. He then added: “You go to London, you go to Paris, it’s almost like a second way of life. It’s ridiculous.”
The US president went on to boast that America had the “best system” for handling such legal matters, without providing evidence for his claims about European cities.
Not the First Time Trump Has Targeted European Capitals
This is not the first time Trump has singled out a major European city over sharia. In September 2025, during a speech before the United Nations General Assembly in New York, he claimed London officials “now want to adopt sharia.”
London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who in 2016 became the first Muslim to lead a Western capital, responded forcefully at the time.
“I think President Trump has shown he is racist, sexist, misogynist, and Islamophobic,” Khan said. Former UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer also dismissed the comments as “ridiculous.”
Khan has not yet publicly responded to Trump’s latest remarks about London and Paris.
Political Fallout and Domestic Pressures
Trump’s latest comments come amid mounting domestic challenges, including a six-month military entanglement in Iran that analysts say could cost his party control of Congress in the upcoming midterm elections.
The Paris mayor’s response highlights the growing friction between Trump’s administration and European leaders over immigration, religious freedom, and the treatment of minority communities. Grégoire’s invocation of ICE — an agency that has faced widespread criticism for its deportation tactics — signals a willingness among European officials to challenge Trump directly on human rights grounds.
For now, the exchange underscores how Trump’s rhetoric continues to reverberate far beyond American borders, drawing sharp rebukes from allies who once might have remained silent.
