Kerry on London: ‘Every American feels as if we were attacked also’

Former Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday said Americans stand with the British people following an attack Saturday in London that left at least seven people dead.

“Every American feels as if we were attacked also,” Kerry said on NBC’s “Meet The Press.”

“There isn’t anybody in America today who doesn’t reach out and express our sorrow and our solidarity with the British people.”

{mosads}But Kerry emphasized how difficult it is to prevent these kinds of attacks.

“The fact is, if people want to kill themselves, this is really hard for law enforcement,” he said.

“What we really need to do is focus more, I believe, not on a travel ban … it’s the worst thing we can do,” he continued, referring to President Trump’s efforts to temporarily bar nationals from six Muslim-majority countries from entering the U.S.

“But we do need to do, and we do, extraordinary screening, but a great deal more effort has to go into the building of community, the reaching out and working with these entities, with these sectors of society so that there is not as significant a gap as there is in many parts of the world.”

Kerry said there is “too much distance between government and the people” all over the world.

“The bottom line is, that in too many places in too many parts of the world, you’ve got a large gap between governance and people, and between the opportunities those people have,” he said.

“This is the same problem of people living in isolation and not feeling as if they have a sufficient stake in society in their world that life is worth living. And if you want to take your own life, you can take other lives with you.”

British Prime Minister Theresa May on Sunday said the country must unite in the wake of the attack, which injured almost 50 people, adding that “enough is enough.”