Comedian Trevor Noah has defended his joke about the conflict between India and Pakistan.
The Daily Show host was criticised for comments he made on the satirical news programme, after he said a war between the two countries would be “the most entertaining war of all time”.
He followed the joke with an impression of a soldier singing and dancing like a Bollywood star.
It's amazing to me that my joke about the conflict in India and Pakistan trended more than the story of the actual conflict itself. Sometimes it seems like people are more offended by the jokes comedians make about an issue than the issue itself.
— Trevor Noah (@Trevornoah) March 2, 2019
Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan was among those criticising the gag, condemning it as “despicably crass & racist”.
South African comic Noah, who took over hosting duties of The Daily Show from veteran Jon Stewart in 2015, has now defended the joke.
He said: “It’s amazing to me that my joke about the conflict in India and Pakistan trended more than the story of the actual conflict itself.
“Sometimes it seems like people are more offended by the jokes comedians make about an issue than the issue itself.”
Noah, who was raised under apartheid in South Africa, said he uses comedy to “process pain and discomfort” and said he made jokes about his mother being shot in the head.
He said: “As a comedian I use comedy to process pain and discomfort in my world but I am sorry that this hurt you and others, that’s not what I was trying to do.”
Tensions between nuclear-armed nations India and Pakistan are at their worst in years, with the dispute centring on the region of Kashmir.
The two countries have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since their independence from British rule in 1947.