Elon Musk hit back at Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese today after a court in the country ordered social media platform X to take down footage of last week’s attack on a church in Sydney, while claiming the court order meant any country will be able to “control the internet”.
Australia’s federal court has asked X to temporarily not show videos of last week’s knife attack by a 16-year-old teenager at a church. In these videos, the young man can be seen stabbing an Assyrian bishop during the service that was broadcast live over the internet.
Musk stressed that in the name of freedom of expression, he will appeal the court’s decision.
The social network has already blocked the posts for Australian users, but Australia’s internet safety commissioner has ruled that the content should be pulled from X entirely as it is particularly violent.
“Does the Prime Minister think he should have jurisdiction over the entire Earth?” Musk asked in a post, referring to Albanese.
“We are concerned that if ANY country can censor content for ALL countries, which is what Australia’s ‘internet safety commissioner’ is calling for, then what stops any country from censoring the entire internet?” he added in his post.
“We have already censored the content in question in Australia,” pending an appeal, Musk said.
Speaking on the ABC television network, the Australian prime minister described Musk as “an arrogant billionaire who believes he is above the law, but also above decency”.
“The idea that someone can go to court to have the right to broadcast violent content on a platform shows how far out of touch Musk is with reality,” Albanese added.
Bishop Mar Marie Emmanuel was wounded in the head and chest last week by a 16-year-old of Lebanese descent, an incident that sparked riots. Australian authorities are concerned that the video of the attack, which has been widely shared on social media, could fuel tensions.
The standoff between the world’s third-richest man and Australia’s prime minister creates a new front in the battle between major internet platforms, on the one hand, and countries and non-governmental organizations, on the other, seeking greater control over content. that they post.
Read more:
* A knife attack at a Sydney church was a “terrorist” act, according to Australian police
* Australia: New knife attack in Sydney – Priest stabbed and 4 others injured
