Rob Lowe has defended seemingly insensitive tweets about the Paris terrorist attacks after he was branded “disgusting, vile, inhumane”.
At least 140 people were murdered in the French capital on Friday night in six separate attacks in the form of shootings and suicide bombings which were carried out near the Stade de France football stadium, a theatre and at restaurants around the city.
As the terrible news unfolded, the actor took to Twitter to share his thoughts on the horrific situation.
He wrote: “Vive La France! #Paris.”
Soon after, French President Francois Hollande gave a speech in which he said the country’s borders would be closed as they attempted to tackle the ongoing incidents.
Appearing to allude to the fact France had previously been accepting refugees from Iraq and Syria - where the majority of extremist militant group ISIS, who has claimed responsibility for the attacks, is located - Hollywood star Rob tweeted: “Oh, NOW France closes its borders. #Hollande.”
He then added: “This is either the worst translation of an important speech ever, or one of the worst ever given. #Hollande.”
The Grinder star’s message angered his followers with many lashing out with furious words.
One Twitter user wrote: “You’re a disgusting human being. Those refugees were fleeing their home countries to save their lives.”
Another posted: “Disgusting, vile, inhumane. These will be the words that come to mind when people think of you after that tweet.”
And someone else wrote: “Disgusting. You had an opportunity to express empathy and compassion. Instead you put this into the world. #shame.”
Rob returned to Twitter after reading the shocked messages from his followers to defend his words, branding those criticising him as “trolls”.
He wrote: “Wow. For you trolls out there, the phrase ‘Vive La France’ is the traditional expression of SUPPORT for France. Don’t misinterpret my words.”
At the time of writing the actor had not deleted his tweets.