ELON MUSK and JK Rowling are among those named in a ‘cyberbullying’ lawsuit filed by Olympic champion Imane Khelif.
Social media exploded earlier this month when footage of Khelif blocking Italian racer Angela Carini in just 46 seconds went viral.
The Algerian was disqualified from last year’s women’s world championships by the IBA due to a “gender test” but has been cleared by the International Olympic Committee to compete in Paris.
Rowling, who wrote the Harry Potter series, and Musk have criticized Khelif’s involvement on X, formerly Twitter. Referring to Khelif, Rowling wrote: “He is being protected by a misogynistic sports organization that is enjoying the suffering of a woman he just punched in the head.”
Meanwhile, X co-owner Musk wrote “absolutely” when retweeting a post that said “men are not suitable for women’s sports” along with a photo of Carini.
And now, Variety reports that both have been named in a criminal complaint filed with French authorities over “serious cyber harassment” that occurred after Khelif participated in the Olympics.
Khelif’s lawyer, Nabil Boudi, reportedly confirmed that Musk and Rowling were both mentioned in a complaint filed with the Paris Prosecutor’s Office on August 13, which has now also opened an investigation.
“On August 13, the (National Center for Countering Online Hate) contacted OCLCH (Central Office for Crimes Against Humanity and Hate Crimes) to conduct an investigation into charges of online harassment based on gender, public insults based on gender, public incitement to discrimination, and public insults based on origin,” they said.
The lawsuit was filed against X, specifically so that the prosecution could investigate all those who might have sent hate messages to Khelif.
Boudi stressed that the investigation is not just about Musk, Rowling or the other high-profile public figures who have been named. “What we are asking is for the prosecutors to not only investigate these people, but also anyone else they feel is necessary. If this goes to trial, they will have to go to trial,” he said.
