George Galloway on Julian Assange: Allegations not Rape, Just Bad Manners [VIDEO]

Bradford's Respect MP says plaintiffs are liars who were already in 'the sex game' with WikiLeaks founder

Bradford MP George Galloway has prompted a storm of criticism by dismissing the allegations made against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as nothing more than "bad manners".

The Respect MP was commenting on the accuations made by two unnamed women, for which Assange faces extradition to Sweden.

Galloway, in his video podcast, Good Night with George Galloway, claims that the allegations made against Assange, "even at their worst" do not constitute rape.

He adds: "At least not rape as anyone with any sense can possibly recognise it. And somebody has to say this."

He comments on the first woman's allegation that she had consensual sex with Assange and then later awoke to find he was having sex with her again.

Galloway said: "This is something which can happen. Not everybody needs to be asked prior to each insertion. Some people believe that when you go to bed with somebody, take off your clothes and have sex with them and then fall asleep, you're already in the sex game with them.

"It might be really bad manners not to have tapped her on the shoulder and said, 'do you mind if I do it again?' It might be really sordid and bad sexual etiquette, but whatever else it is, it is not rape or you bankrupt the term rape of all meaning."

He moves on to the second woman's accusation that Assange continued to have sex with her after a condom ripped.

"You wouldn't just need to be in the room with the two of them to know the truth of that allegation. I don't want to take the biology too far, but you would actually need to be somewhere located inside the woman to know if that allegation were true.

"If it were true, is it rape? It's sordid, it's loathsome, it's caddish, it's brutish, but is it rape? Let me tell you my view. i don't believe either of these women. I don't believe either of these stories."

His controversial video prompted angry outbursts on social media. Times columnist Janice Turner tweeted: "So now we know why George Galloway has been divorced three times."

Former MP Louise Mensch wrote: "So ironic that George Galloway's political party is called Respect."

See the Video below - Assange comments start at 21:04