The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Studies and Prevention issued a “red flag alert” after billionaire Elon Musk was seen raising his arm in a way that appeared to mirror a Nazi salute.
Conversation swirled online over Mr Musk's gesture at the parade following Donald Trump's inauguration in Washington on Monday. Mr Musk finished his speech to Trump supporters by clutching his chest with his right hand and then extending his right arm outward, at an upwards angle, palm down and fingers together.
He made the same gesture to people behind him. But it came as he said “my heart goes out to you” and thanked Trump supporters.
Politicians such as Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemned Mr Musk after people drew comparisons of his gesture to a Nazi or fascist salute.
The Lemkin Institute called it “frightening” and issued a red flag alert for genocide, which they define as a development towards extremism or mass atrocities.
“We have learnt that we must absolutely take leaders, and people in positions of great power, like Elon Musk, at their word,” the organisation said. “Musk’s Hitler salute cannot and must not be swept under the rug.”
Claire Aubin, a historian who specialises in Nazism within the US, said Mr Musk's gesture was a “sieg Heil”. Another historian of fascism, Ruth Ben-Ghiat, said “that was a Nazi salute – and a very belligerent one, too”.
Mr Musk called it a “tired” attack, while far-right commentators supported the Tesla and SpaceX chief executive, who has appeared to support anti-Semitic views in the past.
Mr Trump's nominee for UN ambassador, Elise Stefanik, testified to Congress that “Elon Musk did not do those salutes” and that Americans “see through it”.
Influencer and chief executive of Turning Point USA, Charlie Kirk, asserted that critics were “thirsty for controversy and racism – that doesn’t exist”.
But Mr Musk's onstage act seemed to split Jewish groups. The Anti-Defamation League, an organisation founded to call out anti-Semitic activity, said in a post on X that “many are on edge” in a “delicate moment”.
The group has criticised Mr Musk for condoning or spreading anti-Semitic speech in the past, but appeared to try to defend his actions this time around.
“It seems that Elon Musk made an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute, but again, we appreciate that people are on edge,” it said.
Mr Musk replied to the ADL's post, saying “thanks guys” with a laughing emoji.
The Jewish Council for Public Affairs said, however, that he “knows precisely what he was doing”.
“We know precisely where this extremist behaviour leads, normalising and emboldening avowed neo-Nazis and white supremacists who take this as a stamp of approval for their targeting of Jews, immigrants, people of colour, and so many others,” it said.
The group cited Mr Musk's past actions, such as endorsing the far-right AfD in Germany and recently holding a live-stream with the party's leader Alice Weidel.
The chief executive of the JCPA, Amy Spitalnick, wrote on X: “We are somehow debating whether a Nazi salute at a Trump rally was actually a Nazi salute, just eight hours into the second Trump presidency. This is exactly how fascism works.”
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
more from Janine di Giovanni
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
Microsoft Exchange server exploitation: March 2021; attackers used a vulnerability to steal emails
Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
How the UAE gratuity payment is calculated now
Employees leaving an organisation are entitled to an end-of-service gratuity after completing at least one year of service.
The tenure is calculated on the number of days worked and does not include lengthy leave periods, such as a sabbatical. If you have worked for a company between one and five years, you are paid 21 days of pay based on your final basic salary. After five years, however, you are entitled to 30 days of pay. The total lump sum you receive is based on the duration of your employment.
1. For those who have worked between one and five years, on a basic salary of Dh10,000 (calculation based on 30 days):
a. Dh10,000 ÷ 30 = Dh333.33. Your daily wage is Dh333.33
b. Dh333.33 x 21 = Dh7,000. So 21 days salary equates to Dh7,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service. Multiply this figure for every year of service up to five years.
2. For those who have worked more than five years
c. 333.33 x 30 = Dh10,000. So 30 days’ salary is Dh10,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service.
Note: The maximum figure cannot exceed two years total salary figure.
FIXTURES
UAE’s remaining fixtures in World Cup qualification R2
Oct 8: Malaysia (h)
Oct 13: Indonesia (a)
Nov 12: Thailand (h)
Nov 17: Vietnam (h)
