Gov. Bobby Jindal Says Muslim ‘No-Go Zones’ Do Exist, Despite Fox News Apology

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal refused to back down on the existence of Muslim “no-go zones” following a speech in London Monday where he called them “startling.” Fox News apologized for similar on-air claims following the attacks on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, stating there was “no credible information to support” that “no-go zones,” or areas where non-Muslims were not welcome, existed at all in London.

In his speech before the Henry Jackson Society, a British think tank, Jindal said it was “startling to think that any country would allow, even unofficially, for a so-called no-go zone. The idea that a free country would allow for specific areas of its country to operate in an autonomous way that is not free and is in direct opposition to its laws is hard to fathom.”

After the remarks, Jindal was grilled by CNN about the remark. “Look, I’ve heard from folks here that there are neighborhoods where women don’t feel comfortable going in without veils,” Jindal said. “That’s wrong. We all know that there are neighborhoods where police are less likely to go into.”

When pushed about backing up his statements with facts, Jindal added a qualifier, calling them “so-called no-go zones.” A Fox commentator who talked about no-go zones in London and Birmingham provoked a response from British Prime Minister David Cameron who said he nearly choked on his porridge when he heard about the remarks.

“I think that the radical Left absolutely wants to pretend like this problem is not here,” Jindal said. “Pretending it’s not here won’t make it go away.”

Jindal denied he was “exaggerating” the situation, saying there are “absolutely ... places where the police are less likely to go” and “neighborhoods where they wouldn’t feel comfortable.”

“I know the left wants to make this into an attack on religion and that’s not what this is,” he said. “What we are saying is it’s absolutely an issue for the U.K., absolutely is an issue for America and other European and Western nations.”

Jindal was selected as the seventh most-likely candidate to win the Republican nomination in the 2016 presidential election last month by the Washington Post. His post as governor also ends in 2016.