‘Islamophobia row’: Why is Elon Musk attacking British-Pakistanis?

Elon Musk made waves in British politics this week, sparking controversy with a series of at least 60 posts on X (formerly Twitter) since Tuesday. Musk targeted Prime Minister Keir Starmer and British Muslims, particularly Pakistanis, while politicizing sensitive issues, including the rape of young girls in the UK.

The billionaire tech mogul fired off a string of tweets over the weekend, criticizing the Labour government and Starmer over historic rape scandals, and taking aim at Reform Party leader Nigel Farage for refusing to support anti-Islam activist Tommy Robinson.

One of Musk’s most inflammatory posts called Safeguarding Minister Jess Phillips a “rape genocide apologist” and advocated for the release of Robinson, who was jailed for contempt of court last year, suggesting he was a “political prisoner.”

In response, Starmer condemned Musk’s remarks on Monday, accusing him of spreading misinformation. “Those that are spreading lies and misinformation as far and as wide as possible are not interested in victims, they are interested in themselves,” Starmer said.

Musk, who is also expected to advise Donald Trump after the president’s inauguration on January 20, has increasingly courted controversy in the UK due to his comments about the new Labor government. He has promoted far-right accounts and false narratives, including misinformation about a triple child killing in Southport, UK, last summer, where he falsely claimed the suspect was a Muslim immigrant.

This weekend, Musk commented on the historic case of mass rape and sexual exploitation of around 1,400 girls in Northern England between 1997 and 2013, focusing on the Muslim and Pakistani heritage of those involved. These comments are part of a broader pattern of alleged Islamophobic remarks and misleading content shared by Musk on X.