Could Elon Musk Face Legal Action For UK ‘Civil War’ Post?

After Elon Musk said “civil war is inevitable” following days of rioting in cities in the United Kingdom, the nation’s government warned that anyone inciting violence online will face legal consequences. Could the billionaire be one of those people?

It’s not going to happen, according to a legal expert contacted by Newsweek, who instead said he was “shocked” that newly elected British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, of the left-wing Labour Party, would make such a threat.

In the U.K., the febrile situation has raised concerns about misinformation on social media, but also concerns, including among some far-right activists, about social cohesion in multicultural societies.

Musk, the Tesla CEO and owner of X (formerly Twitter), posted his comment on the same social media platform under a video showing rioters setting off fireworks at police. Musk has claimed there will be a civil war in Europe multiple times previously.

Newsweek has reached out to a representative for Musk via email for comment.

“There is no justification for comments like that,” Starmer’s spokesman said on Monday.

“Anyone who is whipping up violence online will face the full force of the law,” he added.

Newsweek spoke with Yair Cohen, a U.K.-based lawyer who is an expert on internet law. When asked if Elon Musk could face any legal consequences with regard to his post on X, he said “absolutely not.”

“The U.K. law cannot apply to Elon Musk in America. [He] is outside the jurisdiction [and] is protected by his own law,” he said.

He added that “the English courts can do absolutely nothing, and they will have no right to, no legal right to even approach him or talk to you about it, or prosecute him.”

Cohen also said that “the idea that Keir Starmer is going to stop people making those type of observations which are clearly valid, is ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous. I’m actually shocked by the comments that he made.”

Newsweek has reached out to a representative for Starmer via email for comment.

On the other hand, Marcus Collins, a partner at Keystone Law told Newsweek that, “There could be potential criminal liability in the U.K. for X. Whether Elon Musk (or other senior executive[s]) has personal, criminal liability is less certain unless they were clearly a directing mind behind circumstance leading to the commission of the offence (which could be committed recklessly as well as intentionally).”

He cited the recent Online Safety Act 2023 in reference to this, stating that “Personal liability for individual executives under this legislation is narrowed to certain failure to comply with investigation matters and certain child, sexual exploitation issues. It should be remembered that this legislation is designed primarily to deal with the regulation of online providers to ensure that processes are in place to prevent harmful material appearing.”

Collins continued, “If it is shown that X had inadequate processes in place to prevent the harm caused by the posts discussed, then Ofcom as the U.K. regulator could take future action to enforce regulatory compliance in the U.K. through very substantial fines and obliging third parties not to deal with X commercially.”

“The possible offences by X, and potentially a senior executive who is a directing mind behind the operations of X, would be in the nature of accessory offences (‘aiding and abetting’),” he added.

The recent riots in the U.K. came after a mass stabbing in Southport in the northwest of England. Three young girls, Elsie Dot Stancombe, Alice Dasilva Aguiar and Bebe King, died at a Taylor Swift-themed dance workshop. Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, who is 17 years old, has been charged with three counts of murder, 10 counts of attempted murder and possession of a bladed article, according to police.

The spread of misinformation has raised fears that it may have contributed to the violence, with posts containing inaccurate claims gaining millions of impressions.

Rudakubana was born in Cardiff, a city in Wales in the west of Britain, to Rwandan parents who had migrated to the U.K. in 2002. Some posts had inaccurately said that he was an illegal immigrant.

On the weekend, disturbances were reported in northern towns and cities including Rotherham, Middlesbrough, and Bolton, all of which have significant Muslim populations. There have been attacks on Muslim communities and mosques. Some commentators, such as Reform Party leader Nigel Farage, an ally of former President Donald Trump, have linked the violence to broader concerns about immigration and social cohesion.

However, Starmer previously said, “Let’s be very clear about this. It’s not protest. It’s not legitimate. It’s crime and violent disorder. An assault on the rule of the law and the execution of justice.”

During an emergency meeting, Starmer highlighted that the law applies equally online and offline. He said, “If you’re inciting violence, it doesn’t matter whether it’s online or offline.” He expects that those who incite violence online will face arrest and prosecution, similar to those involved in physical riots.

The prime minister’s spokesman reinforced this stance, saying that the government is working with social media platforms to ensure harmful content is removed.

The U.K. Technology Secretary Peter Kyle added in a statement on X that while platforms must act, the primary responsibility lies with the individuals and groups creating harmful content.

— Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (@SciTechgovuk) August 5, 2024

In response to the riots, the government has also announced the deployment of additional officers to address the unrest and restore order.

Farage has called for the U.K. Parliament to be recalled and described the riots as “appalling.” “Ever since the soft policing of the Black Lives Matter protests, the impression of two-tier policing has become widespread,” he said in statement on X.

“The Prime Minister’s faltering attempts to address the current crisis have only added to that sense of injustice. The majority of our population can see the fracturing of our communities as a result of mass, uncontrolled immigration, whether legal or illegal.”

Update 08/06/24 at 11:23 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include comment from Marcus Collins.