A DUP MLA has been criticised for retweeting an online post that described London Mayor Sadiq Khan as “the enemy within”.

DUP East Derry MLA Maurice Bradley retweeted the tweet making reference to Sadiq Khan on Monday and also retweeted a tweet defending a far right march in Poland.

Mr Bradley has since deleted his Twitter account and issued an apology.

“I disagree with Sadiq Khan’s approach to Hezbollah - brutal terrorist apologists. The Mayor has a democratic mandate & his religion is irrelevant,” he said.

On Wednesday morning, SDLP MLA Claire Hanna said Mr Bradley’s retweeting of the two messages could not be dismissed as accidental. And Labour MP John Grogan described the tweet about Mr Khan as “deeply offensive”.

He told BBC Radio Ulster the original tweet was about “something said in the London Assembly about Hezbollah”.

“Mr Khan followed government policy which is to ban the group’s military wing but not to ban their political wing,” he said.

Earlier this week, DUP North Antrim MP Ian Paisley apologised for retweeting and anti-Islam tweet from right-wing commentator Katie Hopkins.

The behaviour of DUP members is under more scrutiny than ever as Theresa May’s Conservative government relies on their support to maintain power at Westminster through the confidence and supply arrangement agreed last year.

Pattern

Ms Hanna told The Irish Times a pattern is emerging among DUP members.

“I find this pattern of DUP sharing far-right content very alarming, and a symptom of the habit in Northern Ireland politics of failing to accept difference and of creating division and bogeymen,” she said.

“The DUP has no history of accountability but may have a problem because very many people will find these opinions completely unacceptable for a party that is essentially in coalition with the Conservatives.

“These views will be very worrying for, for example, the Muslim community in my constituency who make a substantial contribution to society here but who are put at risk of intimidation by the distortion and racism of the far right groups being promoted by the DUP.”

In a statement, a DUP spokesman said Mr Bradley had rightly removed the retweet.

“It did not represent the DUP’s views. This matter will be considered by the Party Officers,” he said.

Separately, a statement from the Belfast Islamic Centre has said the timing of Mr Paisley’s retweet was particularly unfortunate as it was on the eve of the rumoured ‘Punish a Muslim Day’ when many of the community are particularly anxious. Representatives have been in touch with Mr Paisley to ask him to clarify his position on the tweet and with an offer for him to visit the local Muslim community.