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Israel’s president has told Elon Musk that Twitter is harbouring widespread anti-Semitism and that the billionaire has a “huge role” in addressing the problem.
Isaac Herzog urged the Twitter owner to crack down on hateful posts in a private meeting in Jerusalem.
Mr Musk visited Israel on Monday in an attempt to defuse a growing anti-Semitism row that has seen him rebuked by the White House and led advertisers to suspend spending on Twitter, which he has rebranded X.
Flanked by security and wearing body armour, he was shown the Kfar Aza kibbutz, one of the sites attacked by Hamas on October 7, and spoke to Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s Prime Minister.
Mr Herzog, in a meeting at his Beit HaNassi residence, told Mr Musk: “We are inundated by anti-Semitism, which is Jew hatred. And Jew hatred impacts the behaviour of human beings in so many places around the world, and you have a huge role to play.
“We need to fight it together because on the platforms which you lead, unfortunately, there’s a harbouring of a lot of all the hate.
“You’ve seen how evil can supersede everything, you’ve seen it this morning, you’ve seen what hate can bring about, you’ve seen how thought turns into evil, into hate, and into bloodshed.”
Earlier this month Mr Musk was accused of endorsing an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory on Twitter.
In response to a tweet claiming that Jewish people were encouraging “hordes of minorities” to come to the US, Mr Musk wrote: “You have said the actual truth.”
The White House accused Mr Musk of “abhorrent promotion of anti-Semitic and racist hate”. Mr Musk has said he is against anti-Semitism of any kind.
However, a string of advertisers have put spending on hold, after reports that their adverts were being placed next to hateful content. Twitter has slashed spending on moderators since it was sold to Mr Musk for $44bn (£35bn) a year ago.
The Israeli government, which provided a readout of Monday’s meeting, did not reveal what Mr Musk had said in direct response to Mr Herzog’s comments.
Mr Musk said he had been shaken by touring the site of last month’s massacre and viewing footage of the attack.
Mr Musk said he had had an “emotionally difficult day”, adding: “These people [Hamas] have been fed propaganda since they were children. It’s remarkable what humans are capable of if they are fed falsehoods since they are children. They can think that murdering innocent people is a good thing. That’s how much propaganda can affect people’s minds.”
Before the meeting, Mr Musk tweeted: “Actions speak louder than words.”
Separately, Israel agreed to allow Elon Musk’s Starlink system to provide satellite internet to Gaza, weeks after warning that it would be exploited by Hamas.
Shlomo Karhi, Israel’s communications minister, said Mr Musk’s SpaceX had agreed that Starlink would only operate with approval from Israel’s government.
Gaza has faced repeated communications blackouts since the Hamas attacks on Israel last month, and aid organisations say this has made it more difficult to provide humanitarian support.
“Starlink satellite units can only be operated in Israel with the approval of the Israeli Ministry of Communications, including the Gaza Strip,” Mr Karhi said on Monday.
“Elon Musk, I congratulate you for reaching a principle understanding with the Ministry of Communications under my leadership.”
Mr Musk, who is visiting Israel partly in an attempt to combat accusations of antisemitism, was criticised by Israel for pledging to turn on Starlink in the region last month.