Elon Musk shares fake news about 'detainment camps' in UK; deletes post after it gets nearly 2 million views

Elon Musk, the owner of social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), found himself in hot water again after sharing a fabricated news headline from a far-right British political party. The headline falsely claimed that UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer was planning to build "emergency detainment camps" on the Falkland Islands for far-right rioters involved in recent race riots in the UK.

The fake headline, which Musk briefly amplified on X, was allegedly from The Telegraph. However, a simple online search would have quickly shown that no such article existed. The Telegraph itself confirmed that it never published such a story. The image Musk shared originated from Ashlea Simon, co-leader of Britain First, a far-right party in the UK notorious for its inflammatory actions, including so-called "invasions" of mosques and the criminal convictions of its senior members.

According to a report by Politico, Musk deleted the tweet within an hour, but not before it was seen by nearly two million users. Despite removing the post, Musk has yet to publicly acknowledge or apologise for spreading the misinformation. The original tweet from Simon has since been flagged with a "community note" on X, indicating that the story is false.

This incident adds to the ongoing tensions between Musk and the UK government, particularly concerning the spread of misinformation on X. Musk has recently been criticised for his inflammatory tweets amidst the unrest in the UK, including a claim that "civil war is inevitable" in the country.

The situation highlights the growing concerns about the role of social media platforms in disseminating false information, especially when influential figures like Musk are involved.