1 of 3 | Elon Musk (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) receive a briefing from officials as they tour Kibbutz Kfar Aza in Israel on Monday. The settlement was destroyed by Hamas during its attacks on October 7. Photo by Amos Ben-Gershom/Israel Government Press Office |
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Nov. 27 (UPI) -- Elon Musk on Monday toured a kibbutz razed by Hamas alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who was expected to push for more to be done to tackle anti-Semitism online.
During his visit to the Kfar Aza Kibbutz, where 52 people were massacred during Hamas' Oct. 7 attacks, the pair went to the family home of the newly released hostage Abigail Edan. Musk heard how the 4-year-old's parents died and she was abducted and taken to Gaza.
Earlier, in a live-streamed conversation, Musk, who has been under fire over his apparent endorsement of an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory post on his X platform and tolerating hate speech on the site, told Netanyahu he agreed Hamas must be destroyed.
"Those who are intent on murder must be neutralized," Musk said. "Then the propaganda must stop. They're just training people to be murderers."
But he also called for Gaza to be rebuilt and made prosperous.
Herzog's office said representatives of the families of hostages were also expected to be present at the meeting with Musk in Jerusalem, which would be held in private.
Musk's visit came as Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi welcomed SpaceX's acceptance of what Israel said was a "vital" veto over any future planned provision of its Starlink Internet service in Gaza.
The billionaire sparked a row with Jerusalem in October after saying he wanted to deploy the satellite service over Gaza to restore telecommunications to internationally recognized aid organizations operating there, which have suffered repeated communications blackouts since Israel launched its military offensive.
Israel responded by threatening to block Starlink by any means necessary, arguing that Hamas might use it for military purposes.
"As a result of this significant agreement, Starlink satellite units can only be operated in Israel with the approval of the Israeli Ministry of Communications, including the Gaza Strip," Karhi wrote on X, welcoming Musk to Israel.
"During your time in Israel, I hope that you will be able to gain valuable insight, and that it will serve as a springboard for future endeavors, as well as enhance your relationship with the Jewish people and values we share with the entire world."
SpaceX, whose network of more than 3,500 low-Earth orbit satellites provide Internet to remote regions or places where communications infrastructure has been damaged or disabled, launched 95 satellites in a six-day period in March 2022 to help Ukraine after its communications were disrupted by Russian forces.
