Reform MS faces backlash after linking Berlin terror attack to Welsh asylum policy

Emily Price

A Reform MS has drawn a sharp backlash online after falsely linking a terror attack in Berlin by a German citizen to an integration programme for asylum seekers in Wales.

Gŵyr Abertawe MS Steven Rodaway tagged First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth in a Facebook post featuring an image of the suspected Berlin Pride terror attacker Abdul Ballout, suggesting that he was an asylum seeker and implying that others like him could come to Wales.

Mr Rodaway wrote: “How many people like Abdul Ballout (the alleged Berlin attacker) do you believe Wales should welcome under the ‘Nation of Sanctuary’ or ‘City of Sanctuary’ approach?

“The people of Wales deserve clear answers. How do you intend to protect our communities when people arrive without their identities being fully established or when legitimate security concerns cannot immediately be ruled out?

“Compassion and public safety should go hand in hand. The public has a right to know what safeguards are in place, how thorough the checks are, and how the Welsh Government believes these policies protect the people it serves.”

Mr Rodaway’s post was blasted as “unprofessional rage bait”.

His comments about the Berlin incident were later amplified by the notorious Swansea-based far-right group Voice of Wales.

Sharing a screen grab of the Reform MS’s post, the group accused Welsh ministers of “enticing more potential third world voters to come to Wales”.

21-year-old Ballout was shot dead by police after allegedly driving a van into a crowd at a Berlin Pride event on Saturday night.

Officials have described the incident as a suspected Islamist terrorist attack in which one woman was killed and 29 others were injured.

Ballout was not an asylum seeker, but a German citizen of Lebanese background who was known to police and had been radicalised.

Mr Rodaway was slammed in the comments section beneath his post by users who accused him of politicising the “horrific event”.

Others pointed out that it is the UK Home Office that manages the asylum process and not Rhun ap Iorwerth.

Immigration, borders, visas, and asylum are reserved matters controlled exclusively by the UK Government in Westminster.

The Home Office reviews applications, conducts interviews, and makes decisions on whether to grant refugee status or protection for asylum seekers.

The Welsh Government’s Nation of Sanctuary policy aims to help refugees and asylum seekers integrate into Welsh society after they have been resettled in Wales by the UK Government, with the goal of fostering stronger, more cohesive communities.

The majority of money for the policy had gone towards supporting Ukrainians fleeing the Russian war.

Nation.Cymru asked Mr Rodaway whether he was aware that Abdul Ballout was not an asylum seeker and, if so, whether he had deliberately sought to conflate the attack in Berlin by a German national with Wales’ Nation of Sanctuary policy.

We also asked if he understood that the Welsh Government does not determine who enters Wales because border control is entirely the responsibility of the UK Government.

Mr Rodaway did not respond.

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