Fox & Friends star Brian Kilmeade has issued an apology to viewers following comments he made about killing homeless people during a discussion about the murder of Iryna Zarutska

Brian Kilmeade apologized for his scathing comments(Image: Getty Images)

Fox News star Brian Kilmeade has apologized after he suggested homeless people should be killed.

The Fox & Friends co-host appeared on Fox & Friends Weekend on Sunday, where he addressed his comments to viewers. He said, “In the morning, we were discussing the murder of Iryna Zarutska in Charlotte, North Carolina, and how to stop these kinds of attacks by homeless, mentally ill assailants, including institutionalizing or jailing such people so they cannot attack again.

“Now, during that discussion, I wrongly said they should get lethal injections. I apologize for that extremely callous remark. I am obviously aware that not all mentally ill, homeless people act as the perpetrator did in North Carolina, and that so many homeless people deserve our empathy and compassion.”

On Fox and Friends last Wednesday (September 10), Brian was joined by fellow hosts Lawrence Jones, Ainsley Earhardt as they talked about the shocking murder of Iryna, a Ukrainian refugee who was fatally stabbed in the neck in an unprovoked attack on a light-rail train in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Brian made the comments during a discussion about the murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska(Image: FOX News)

The suspect was a Black homeless man with a long history of violent crime and mental illness, which has sparked outrage among conservatives. Decarlos Dejuan Brown Jr., 34, was arrested following the brutal murder, which was captured on CCTV.

He now faces a state first-degree murder charge and a federal charge of committing an act causing death on a mass transportation system. The horrifying footage of the attack has caused a worldwide outpouring of grief for Iryna, with many questioning how something so heinous had happened.

Enraged at the situation, the Fox hosts demanded the government take a stronger approach at handling the homelessness crisis.

Lawrence said, “They have given billions of dollars to mental health and the homeless population. A lot of them don’t want to take the programs, and a lot of them don’t want to get the help that is necessary. You can’t give them a choice. Either you take the resources that we’re going to give you, or you decide that you are going to be locked up in jail.”

Iryna Zarutska was brutally stabbed in the neck in an unprovoked attack(Image: GoFundMe)

Brian then scathingly shared, “Or involuntary lethal injection. Or something. Just kill them.”

The comments sparked fury from Homeless organizations, with Donald Whitehead, Executive Director of the National Coalition for the Homeless telling The Irish Star, “It is dangerous. It shows a lack of human compassion, and it is really the worst possible time for that kind of language to be expressed.”

he anti-homeless rhetoric has coincided with President Donald Trump’s recent crackdown on homelessness in Washington, DC, telling the homeless to “move out immediately” or the federal government will begin forcibly “removing” encampments that have turned the city “into a wasteland.”

“The homelessness problem has ravaged the city,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters“If they refuse, they will be susceptible to fines or to jail time.”