The British government has expressed outrage over a post by Elon Musk amidst the right-wing extremist riots in British cities.
The US entrepreneur and billionaire commented on the unrest on his platform X, formerly known as Twitter, stating, "Civil war is inevitable." He further reinforced his stance by suggesting that conflicts are "inevitable" when incompatible cultures are brought together without assimilation.
In response to Musk's comments, the British government swiftly condemned his remarks.
A government spokesperson stated, "There is no justification for such comments. What we are experiencing in this country is organized, violent thuggery, which has no place on our streets or on the internet."
The riots erupted following the stabbing of three girls and the injury of several children in the northwestern English city of Southport on July 29.
False information alleging that the perpetrator was a Muslim migrant had been circulated on various platforms. In reality, a 17-year-old born to parents from Rwanda and residing in the UK was in custody as the suspect.
In light of the unrest, the British government reached out to social media conglomerates. Minister of Technology Peter Kyle emphasized the responsibility of these companies to halt the spread of misinformation and incitement.
However, Musk has shown little interest in de-escalation. On Tuesday, he posted a suggestion that critics of the British government would soon find themselves in the electric chair.
Musk's statements have also sparked sharp criticism in Germany. Jens Zimmermann, a digital policy spokesperson for the Social Democratic Party (SPD), expressed concern over Musk's actions, stating that while freedom of speech applies to him, it is highly problematic if Musk uses his unrestricted access to the X platform to influence discussions in his favor.
Zimmermann accused Musk of aligning himself with right-wing movements and intentionally supporting parties such as the Alternative for Germany (AfD). Musk has previously expressed sympathies for the AfD on X, despite the party being labeled as right-wing extremist.
The Chair of the Digital Committee in the Bundestag, Tabea Rößner of the Green Party, described it as "extremely alarming" that the owner of a platform crucial for public opinion could propagate rhetoric inciting civil war. She called for an urgent assessment of whether Musk's statements had crossed the threshold of criminality defined by the German Criminal Code.
Within the EU, X is regulated under the Digital Services Act (DSA). A preliminary investigation concluded that X violated DSA rules, potentially leading to substantial fines for the corporation.
Moritz Körner, a Member of the European Parliament from the Free Democratic Party (FDP), urged the Commission to focus on sober but consistent enforcement of regulations, emphasizing the significance of social media in light of the events in Britain.
Tiemo Wölken, an SPD Member of the European Parliament, characterized Musk's statements as a "social accelerant" and called for a swift conclusion to the DSA investigation by the EU to prevent further harm.
Due to hate speech and incitement, X has suffered a significant loss in value since Musk's acquisition in October 2022. Cases of hate speech, bullying, and racism have been on the rise on the platform with minimal content moderation. This has led to substantial economic consequences for X, with major companies halting their advertising on the network.
Moreover, hate speech and incitement have not only impacted the company's revenue and reputation but also its user base. X's daily active users dropped from approximately 260 million in November 2022 to 225 million in October 2023.
Elon Musk's apparent indifference to these developments is evident as he continues to intervene in politics. Following the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, Musk publicly voiced his support for the Republican as US President, aligning himself with Trump as a prominent and influential ally.
