A US newspaper has claimed that its Twitter feed was hacked after it posted a tweet saying that Donald Trump was "going to hell”.

The Washington Examiner insisted the early morning message did not come from its own staff.

“Trump is going to hell," it read. "Anyone who ever read the bible can tell you where it stands on rich adulterers. The key to God’s forgiveness is repentance. Trump’s entire political career has been about the exact opposite of that.”

It added: "Also this paper is garbage for promoting ‘Trump and God.’”

The newspaper said it was “taking appropriate action.”

Social media users commented that the tweet performed much better than others on its feed promoting its stories about Republican figures such as Supreme Court judge Brett Kavanaugh.

The tweet was eventually deleted two hours after it was posted.