Great Britain London criticizes Elon Musk's comments on riots

Comments by Elon Musk on the right-wing extremist and anti-Muslim riots in the UK are causing outrage.

British government members criticized a post by the multi-billionaire on his online platform X. In response to an anti-migration comment and a video of the riots, Musk wrote: "Civil war is inevitable."

The comment was completely irresponsible, Secretary of State for Justice Heidi Alexander told Times Radio. "We see police officers being seriously injured and buildings being set on fire." Operators of online platforms must exercise their power responsibly. Previously, Prime Minister Keir Starmer's spokesman had already emphasized that there was no justification for such comments.

Musk had demonstrated a good relationship with Starmer's conservative predecessor Rishi Sunak. In November 2023, the two discussed the risks of the technology at an international security conference on artificial intelligence.

At a meeting between Technology Minister Peter Kyle and representatives from Tiktok, Facebook parent company Meta, Google and X, the new social democratic government made it clear that the companies had a responsibility to stop the spread of misinformation and hate speech. "There is an enormous amount of content in circulation that the platforms need to deal with quickly," said Kyle.

But the X boss did not let up. Under a video clip of Starmer, in which the new head of government announced, among other things, that he would not tolerate attacks on mosques or Muslim communities, Musk wrote: "Shouldn't you be concerned about attacks on *all* communities?"

According to experts and the media, posts on social media are fueling the unrest that has been going on for days. False reports are circulating that the attacker who stabbed three girls in the town of Southport on July 29 was a Muslim migrant. In fact, a 17-year-old who was born in the UK to Rwandan parents is in custody.

The rumor was also spread by high-reach accounts and followers of conspiracy theories such as the British-American influencer Andrew Tate.

Musk is also accused of lifting the bans on X for known right-wing extremists such as the founder of the English Defence League, Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, known as Tommy Robinson. Robinson, who fled the country in a hurry and is on a luxury vacation according to the British media, has been posting calls for anti-Muslim protests and spreading fake news for days.

Serious riots in Plymouth and Belfast

In several cities, mostly right-wing rioters have been attacking the police for days. Several officers have been injured and around 400 people have been arrested so far. Dozens of rioters and looters have been charged across the country, as well as some who are said to have incited hatred online. Most recently, there were serious riots in the southern English port city of Plymouth and in Belfast.

Police in the Northern Irish capital used rubber bullets for the first time in years when they were attacked by rioters with incendiary devices and bricks. A man aged between 50 and 60 was seriously injured and taken to hospital. Police believe he was the victim of a hate crime.

SDA