Foreigners Beware: London’s Top Cop Warns of Legal Action for Online Hate!

The Commissioner of London’s Metropolitan Police has issued a warning that foreign nationals could face charges for inciting hatred online, specifically mentioning Elon Musk, the owner of X, as a possible target. This statement is part of a broader crackdown on alleged hate speech following a series of right-wing riots across the country.

“We will enforce the law to its fullest extent, whether crimes are committed on our streets or from abroad online. We will pursue you,” Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley stated during an interview with Sky News on Friday. When asked if the Metropolitan Police intended to prosecute individuals posting inflammatory content from other countries, Rowley responded, “Being a keyboard warrior does not protect you from the law,” and singled out “the likes of Elon Musk” as possible subjects of investigation.

As of Friday, over 700 arrests had been made, and more than 300 individuals had been charged in connection with the riots, which began after a teenager of Rwandan descent fatally stabbed three children and injured ten others in Southport late last month.

The protests, initially sparked by a false rumor that the attacker was a Muslim immigrant, escalated into broader anti-Islam and anti-immigration demonstrations. Last Sunday, rioters set fire to a hotel housing asylum seekers in Rotherham. Among those arrested, over 30 individuals have been charged with online offenses, such as sharing riot footage or posting content that the Crown Prosecution Service claims “incites violence or hatred.”

Critics, including Elon Musk, have accused the government of suppressing free speech and operating a “two-tier” justice system, where white British citizens are punished more harshly than immigrants.

On Saturday, Musk highlighted the disparity between the cases of Steven Mailen and Mustafa al Mbaidib. Mailen, 54, received a prison sentence of over two years on Friday for shouting and making gestures at a police officer during a violent protest in Hartlepool last week. In contrast, Al Mbaidib, a 27-year-old Jordanian national, was fined £26 ($33) last month for assaulting a female police officer in Bournemouth in May. “This certainly looks like unequal justice in the UK,” Musk commented on X. He also shared a series of memes comparing British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to a Nazi officer and likening the British government to the totalitarian regime depicted in George Orwell’s ‘1984.’

According to The Telegraph, Starmer is reportedly considering amending Britain’s Online Safety Act to penalize social media companies that permit the spread of “legal but harmful” content. The act, initially proposed by the previous Conservative government, originally included such a provision, but it was removed after Business and Trade Minister Kemi Badenoch argued that it amounted to “legislating for hurt feelings.”