Jeremy Clarkson, a columnist for the British tabloid The Sun, known for years for his provocative statements, sparked a heated debate after a scathing article directed at Meghan Markle, in which he said he dreamed of seeing a crowd throw excrement at the Duchess of Sussex. , reports AFP.

“I hate her (…) I can’t sleep at night and I lie awake, gnashing my teeth and dreaming of the day when she walks naked through the streets of every city in Britain while mobs throw excrement at her,” he said. wrote Jeremy Clarkson in a column published on Friday.

The article was published a day after Netflix released the final episodes of a documentary about Harry and Meghan, in which they accused the media of racism and wanting to “destroy” Meghan.

A columnist with an already controversial reputation caused a wave of indignant reactions.

From London Mayor Sadiq Khan to Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, many people have strongly condemned Jeremy Clarkson’s comments.

Even Prime Minister Rishi Sunak reacted from Latvia, where he was away, saying that “words matter” when you are a public figure.

The British Press Service (Ipso) said it had received more than 12,000 complaints.

After days of escalating controversy, The Sun removed the article from its website on Monday afternoon, saying it did so at the request of its author.

Jeremy Clarkson, 62, apologized on Twitter. “I made a weird Game of Thrones reference and a lot of people took it badly. I am appalled that I have caused so much pain and will be more careful in the future,” he wrote.

In one of Game of Thrones’ most memorable scenes, a female character is subjected to a “walk of shame,” in which she is forced to walk naked through the streets while people throw trash at her.

This is not the first time that Jeremy Clarkson has been sanctioned for scandalous or provocative language.

In 2015, he was axed from BBC Top Gear after physically and verbally abusing a producer. Before that, he had already caused a lot of controversy with his sometimes racist outbursts.