German state media has accused Tesla trillionaire Elon Musk and anti-grooming gang activist Tommy Robinson of calling for the “hunting” of migrants in the wake of an alleged asylum seeker beheading attempt in Belfast.
Tuesday’s edition of German public broadcaster ZDF flagship programme ‘Today Live’ argued that the backlash to footage of a Sudanese asylum seeker allegedly attempting to cut a man’s head off in Northern Ireland earlier this month was a result of malign actors from abroad on social media, signalling out Elon Musk and Tommy Robinson in particular.
Introducing the segment, presenter Christina v. Ungern-Sternberg said: “A brutal attempted murder on a public street in Belfast. Someone films it; the video goes viral. A racist mob subsequently hunts down migrants. Calls for this had come from a British right-wing extremist and tech billionaire Elon Musk. The pattern isn’t new.”
Not only did the German public broadcaster fail to provide any evidence that either Musk or Robinson had called for the violent targeting of migrants, as was seen in some cases during the Belfast riots, ZDF also appeared to undermine their entire argument with the posts they cited as evidence of incietment.
Indeed, in one of the only posts highlighted by the broadcaster, veteran street organiser Tommy Robinson said: “The whole of the United Kingdom is hitting the streets tonight at 7pm following yet another invader attack on our people.”
This post was accompanied with a list of various protests, which featured the call for people to remain: “Peaceful. Respectful. Together.”
The post was shared by Musk, who added: “Only by protesting REPEATEDLY and LOUDLY will there be any change!!”
Hellbound and Down 