LONDON: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Elon Musk to strike a balance between protecting free expression and fighting hate speech at a meeting on Monday after weeks of controversy over antisemitic content on Musk’s social media platform X.
Earlier this month, Musk attacked the Anti-Defamation League, accusing the nonprofit that works to fight antisemitism of primarily causing a 60 percent decrease in US ad revenue at X, without providing evidence.
Musk bought the platform, then known as Twitter, in October.
Musk previously joined a conversation on X with the hashtag #BantheADL, engaging with users who expressed white supremacist views, and asked followers whether he should poll the platform about banning the ADL.
“I hope you find within the confines of the First Amendment, the ability to not only stop antisemitism ... but any collective hatred of a people,” Netanyahu said during the meeting that was broadcast live on X from Tesla’s factory in Fremont, California.
“I know you’re committed to that ... but I encourage and urge you to find a balance,” Netanyahu said.
Musk responded by saying he was against antisemitism and against anything that “promotes hate and conflict,” repeating his previous statements that X would not promote hate speech.
Musk has said X should be a platform for people to post diverse viewpoints, but the company will limit the distribution of certain posts that may violate its policies, calling the approach “freedom of speech, not reach.”
The billionaire, who also runs Tesla and SpaceX, noted that he received more pushback from Tesla employees about the meeting with Netanyahu than “anything else I’ve ever done.”
Netanyahu and his nationalist-religious coalition are trying to limit some of the Israeli Supreme Court’s powers, arguing it is necessary to prevent political overreach by unelected judges.
Opponents say the changes could encourage corruption and abuses of power by removing effective oversight, and the issue has split Israeli society and raised concerns over Israel’s democratic health.
About 200 people protesting the judicial overhaul gathered outside Tesla’s California factory, where the event was held.
Musk and Netanyahu also discussed how to harness the benefits of the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence, while limiting the risks to society, a concern Musk and others in the tech industry have raised in recent months.
“We stand today at a juncture for all humanity, where we have to choose between a blessing and a curse,” Netanyahu said, adding that AI could advance medicine but lead to risks like disrupting democracy.
Israel is considered a world-leader in AI, thanks to burgeoning computing and robotics industries that draw on talent developed in the technologically advanced conscript military.
Foreign investment in Israeli tech startups has plunged in the last year, partly due to a global slowdown and exacerbated by investor fears that the push to trim the Supreme Court’s powers would remove a key check and balance.
With foreign flows down sharply, the shekel has weakened by more than 8 percent versus the dollar this year.
Israel’s Netanyahu urges Musk to balance free speech, fighting hate on X
https://arab.news/ge27t
Israel’s Netanyahu urges Musk to balance free speech, fighting hate on X
- Netanyahu’s request to X follows a spree of controversy over antisemitic content on the platform
- Tesla employees criticized Musk’s meeting with Israeli PM over the government judicial reforms
Tucker Carlson claims he was detained at Israeli airport
DUBAI: Earlier this week, Tucker Carlson flew to Israel to interview US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, according to media reports.
Carlson, who reportedly refused to leave Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport complex, conducted the interview at the airport, after which he said he and his staff were detained and their passports were seized.
“Men who identified themselves as airport security took our passports, hauled our executive producer into a side room and then demanded to know what we spoke to Ambassador Huckabee about,” Carlson said in a statement to The New York Post.
However, Carlson’s claims have been contradicted by Huckabee and Israeli authorities.
Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor and Fox News host, said on social media platform X that “EVERYONE who comes in/out of Israel (every country for that matter) has passports checked & routinely asked security questions,” including himself, despite holding a diplomatic passport and visa.
Thanks @EFischberger for a more accurate report. EVERYONE who comes in/out of Israel (every country for that matter) has passports checked & routinely asked security questions. Even ME going in/out with Diplomatic Passport & Diplomatic Visa. https://t.co/UbblLiznMO
— Ambassador Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) February 18, 2026
The US Embassy in Israel also described the interaction as routine passport control procedures.
The Israel Airports Authority said in a statement that Carlson and his staff “were not detained, delayed, or interrogated.”
They were asked “a few routine questions, in accordance with standard procedures applied to many travelers,” and this conversation took place in a separate room within the VIP lounge to protect their privacy, the statement added.
“No unusual incident occurred, and the Israel Airports Authority firmly rejects any other claims.”
Israeli Airports Authority:
— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) February 18, 2026
Contrary to the reports, Tucker Carlson and his entourage were not detained, delayed, or interrogated.
Mr. Carlson and his party were politely asked a few routine questions, in accordance with standard procedures applied to many travelers.
The…
Carlson has faced criticism in recent years over his commentary on Israel, with critics accusing him of amplifying narratives that are hostile to Israel and, at times, antisemitic. He has also questioned Israel’s treatment of Christian communities in the region.
After Fox News canceled his show in April 2023, he launched his own program, “The Tucker Carlson Show” in 2024.
The show has featured controversial figures, including Darryl Cooper, who has made statements widely condemned as Holocaust denial, and white nationalist commentator Nick Fuentes.
In his interview with Fuentes, Carlson labeled Huckabee a “Christian Zionist.”
Carlson has also criticized Huckabee for not doing enough to protect Christian interests in the region. In one video, he said: “Why not go ahead and talk to Christians and find out their side of the story? Why aren’t American Christian leaders like Mike Huckabee or Ted Cruz, people who invoke the Christian Bible to justify what they’re doing, why haven’t they done this?”
Huckabee responded to the video on X, writing: “Instead of talking ABOUT me, why don’t you come talk TO me? You seem to be generating a lot of heat about the Middle East. Why be afraid of the light?”
Carlson accepted the invitation, and their teams coordinated the interview, leading to his brief visit to Israel.
