London's Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, has warned individuals, including American citizens, who may be contributing to the ongoing unrest in the United Kingdom through their online activities.

In an interview with Sky News, Rowley stated, "We will throw the full force of the law at people. And whether you're in this country committing crimes on the streets or committing crimes from further afield online, we will come after you. Being a keyboard warrior does not make you safe from the law." He elaborated on potential offenses, including "incitement, stirring up racial hatred, [and] numerous terrorist offenses regarding the publishing of material."

Freedom of speech is the bedrock of democracy. If the truth is suppressed, it is impossible to make an informed voting decision.

The degree to which freedom of speech is being undermined around the world is extremely alarming.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 10, 2024

Elon Musk has been vocal in his criticism of the UK government's response to the riots. Musk suggested that the UK is headed toward "civil war" and questioned whether Britain was becoming like "the Soviet Union" in response to reports of arrests for offensive online comments.

He wrote on X, "Freedom of speech is the bedrock of democracy. If the truth is suppressed, it is impossible to make an informed voting decision. The degree to which freedom of speech is being undermined around the world is extremely alarming."

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer responded to Musk's comments, stating there was "no justification" for them. The spokesperson added that social media companies "have a responsibility" to combat misinformation and limit the spread of criminal activity on their platforms.

Just Elon Musk quote tweeting the co-leader of far-right party, Britain First, who is sharing a fake Telegraph headline

Seen by almost 1 million people in 15 minutes

Utterly dystopian pic.twitter.com/4W5ZOssbEY

— Josh Self (@Josh_Self_) August 8, 2024

Musk previously shared a fake headline – pretending to be from the Telegraph – that said Starmer is "considering building 'emergency detainment camps' on the Falkland Islands." 30 minutes later, Musk deleted the post.

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The government authorized on Sunday a national guard sought by far-right security chief Itamar Ben-Gvir to focus on Arab unrest, but held off on giving him direct command after political rivals voiced concern the force could become a sectarian "militia."

The previous government began setting up an auxiliary police force to tackle internal violence following pro-Palestinian protests in mixed Jewish-Arab areas during the Gaza war of May 2021. That government fell before the new force was finalized.

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Having recanted some of his views, he joined Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition with an expanded law-and-order portfolio that he pledged would include a beefed-up national guard for use mainly in crime- and rioting-hit Arab communities.

"It will deal with this exclusively. The police does not deal exclusively with this. It's busy with a thousand and one things," he told Army Radio.

The initiative was jump-started last week when Netanyahu agreed to bring Ben-Gvir's national guard for cabinet approval after the security minister backed his pause of a judicial overhaul proposal that had triggered nationwide street protests.

But having voted in favor on Sunday, the cabinet said in a statement that the question of whom the national guard would be subordinate to remained open. It appointed a multi-agency panel to submit recommendations on this and other issues in 90 days.

That appeared to be in response to criticism by Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara that the cabinet decision was made without first establishing the parameters of the national guard.

Israel's police chief, Inspector-General Yaacov Shabtai, has expressed misgivings that the national guard, if not under his own force's control, "could prove most costly and even harm the security of the citizenry," according to the Ynet news site.

Opposition Leader Yair Lapid last week scorned the proposed national guard as "a private militia for a dangerous Tik-Tok clown" – a reference to Ben-Gvir's volubility on social media.

"Why does the State of Israel - which has an army, police, military intelligence, the Shin Bet, Mossad, National Security Council, Prisons Service, riot police, a SWAT team – need another national guard?" tweeted Arab lawmaker Ayman Odeh.

Ben-Gvir said he wants control of the national guard because, in his view, it had been neglected by police chiefs. But he told Army Radio he was willing to consider letting them stay in charge "if they're serious and really want it."

The national guard will take months to get off the ground, he said, with an initial intake of 1,850 personnel that could include seconded or reservist police officers and volunteers, from both Arab and Jewish sectors.

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Riots in Sweden over the burning of the Quran by far-right activists continued overnight Saturday for the third day in a row in major cities across the country, with Muslims around the world condemning the desecration of the holy book.

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According to Swedish media reports, the rioters in Sweden hurled rocks at passers-by and firebombed vehicles. Some also shouted "allahu akbar" ("God is the greatest" in Arabic)

Danish right-wing party Stram Kur carried out the controversial burning, under police protection. The event was originally scheduled to take place in Landskrona but was moved to Malmo due to security concerns. The first riots erupted on Friday, even before the actual burning of the sacred text, which is believed to be spoken by God to the Prophet Muhammad.

Kim Hild, the spokeswoman for police in southern Sweden, said on Saturday that her officers would let the demonstration by the Stram Kurs take place because this was within their rights under Swedish law that guarantees free speech. The right of the protesters "to demonstrate and speak out weighs heavily and it takes an incredible amount for this to be ignored", Hild told Swedish media.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh heavily criticized the act on Sunday, saying, "The Islamic Republic of Iran strongly condemns the burning of the sacred word of God (the Quran) in the Swedish city of Linkoping by a Danish racist and extremist element that has occurred under the pretext of freedom of speech with the support of that country's police." He added that Sweden was duty-bound to take "immediate, strong and explicit" steps to counter the party, adding that "such insulting action is the blatant example of spreading hatred, runs counter to freedom of speech, and must be condemned by all who believe in co-existence and dialogue of religions."

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The Israel Defense Forces and Israel Police will establish a special Border Police unit that will help tackle violence in mixed cities.

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The decision comes as part of lessons learned from May's conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip during which several cities in Israel were shook by riots of Arab residents, when police were overwhelmed and ill-equipped to deal with the violence.

Although the IDF regularly moved Border Police units from Judea and Samaria to the cities after the riots began, this was only a temporary solution.

Following Operation Guardian of the Walls, the IDF and the Israel Police worked to draw lessons from the conflict for the future. It was immediately decided to transfer command over Border Police units from the military to the police, as well as draw upon troops from the Home Front Command to replace police to secure IDF bases and convoys.

As for the new Border Police units, they will consist of reservists who until now mostly served in "regular" military units, usually in infantry or border defense.

The new unit will be jointly funded by the military and the police. The IDF will be responsible for recruiting and training the reservists, and the Israeli Police will authorize them as reservist Border Police officers.

The unit will participate in ongoing operational activities in Judea and Samaria and Jerusalem, and, if required, operate under the Israel Police for internal security missions, such as preventing violent riots in mixed cities.

"This is a solution that will benefit everyone," one senior official said. "The IDF will gain more skilled troops that can operate in Judea and Samaria and the police will gain more skilled troops that can assist in internal security."

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Israel will bypass some of its Arab towns in transporting ground forces to future war fronts, a senior army general said on Friday, citing lessons from sectarian violence that erupted in the country in May during clashes in the Gaza Strip.

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Arabs, most of them Muslim, constitute a fifth of Israel's population. Many identify as Palestinian. Some mounted protests against the Gaza campaign that spiraled into riots.

Major-General Yitzhak Turgeman, chief of logistics for the Israel Defense Forces, said it had since marked out 1,600 km (1,000 miles) of dirt tracks that could serve as wartime alternatives to roads and set up new anti-riot units to protect convoys.

"I'm really concerned about ... the impact of violent disturbances on internal security and movement of transport convoys," Turgeman told the Maariv newspaper in an interview.

He said major deployments were now unlikely to happen through Wadi Ara, a valley highway among close clusters of Arab towns that leads to the northern fronts with Lebanon and Syria.

"In wartime, the IDF will do what is right in order to bring its units to the war theater as quickly as possible, and we have enough alternatives," Turgeman said.

The remarks came after video clips on social media showed army vehicles wending through Umm al-Fahm, an Arab-majority city, during a drill. The municipality issued an open letter condemning the presence as "unacceptable and hurtful to residents' feelings".

Public Security Minister Omer Barlev described police operations to seize illegal firearms in Israeli Arab communities as a further safeguard for future military deployments.

In the absence of such actions, a war could see "100 armed (Israeli) Arabs suddenly go down to this or that road or artery and hold up for 48 hours a division that has to deploy on the Lebanese border within 24 hours," Barlev told Army Radio last month.

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Arab youths are once again rioting near the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem's Old City. Police reinforcements have been dispatched to the area to rein in the phenomenon.

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Rioters threw rocks at buses, harassed Jewish women passing by, vandalized public property, and clashed with security forces. Almost all of the 22 rioters arrested Tuesday were minors.

Security officials believe social media has played a significant role in inflaming tensions on the Arab street in the capital. They are, however, unable to pinpoint the source of their anger, leading some to believe the youths are simply acting out due to boredom. The riots are not organized affairs, and they have been localized thus far.

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has ordered Border Police to send reinforcements into the city.

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Local vendors, whose sales have been hit as a result of the rioting, have spoken out against the violence.

Religious Zionism Party head Bezalel Smotrich visited the Damascus Gate area with fellow party members Wednesday.

"Sovereignty in Jerusalem cannot be captive to the hands of [Ra'am party head] Mansour Abbas. We came here because every night, Jews undergo attacks and harassment in the capital. Bennett's kowtowing to Abbas and the Islamic Movement is leading to the loss of governance over wide swathes of the country. The rioters understand that the government is limited in its ability to act against them, and they are taking advantage of this to determine facts on the ground. We are here to tell the Arab rioters and terrorists that that won't happen," he said.

Otzma Yehudit MK Itamar Ben-Gvir was among those lawmakers to accompany Smotrich. He said: "Officers who feel threatened need to act with a firm hand – and shoot if necessary. The police must be in charge. And if they want to, they can."

Meanwhile, Jewish prayer services on the Temple Mount are reportedly continuing under the radar despite the ban on non-Muslim prayer at the site.

According to The Jerusalem Post, 108 Jews visited the site on Monday and another 118 visited on Wednesday, 80 in the allotted morning hours and 38 later in the day.

The Temple Mount was closed to non-Muslims on Tuesday due to a Muslim holiday.

Public Security Minister Omer Bar-Lev held a meeting on Sunday with senior police officials where he noted the status-quo in place on the Temple Mount since 1967, which bans non-Muslim prayer on the site.

"In accordance with this situation, the Temple Mount will be open for visitation by non-Muslims but not for prayer," Bar-Lev said. "It is important we enforce" the continuation of this status" established by Israel in 1967, he said.

A spokesman for Bar-Lev clarified to The Jerusalem Post that his comments had not pertained to "quiet prayer," as the police cannot enforce a ban on prayer that is "in someone's heart."

i24NEWS contributed to this report.

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Hundreds of Hamas-backed rioters on Saturday launched what they said was the first in a series of nighttime protests along the Israeli border, throwing explosives toward IDF troops who responded with live fire.

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Organizers said the violent gatherings, which are to continue throughout the week, were meant to step up pressure on Israel to ease an economic blockade on the Gaza Strip.

"The occupation will not enjoy calm unless the siege on our beloved land is lifted," said Abu Omar, a spokesman for the rioters.

Israel and Egypt have maintained the blockade since Hamas, an extremist Islamist group sworn to Israel's destruction, seized control of Gaza in 2007.

Amateur video footage and photos from inside Gaza showed hundreds of Palestinian rioters engaged in Saturday's gathering. Some appeared to be throwing explosives and chanting in celebrations as blasts sounded.

The IDF said troops responded to the explosives by firing live rounds toward the protesters. It said there were no wounded on the Israeli side.

Gaza health officials said three protesters were wounded by Israeli response fire.

Earlier Saturday, Gaza health officials said a 12-year-old Palestinian boy died from head wounds after being shot during a similar riot a week earlier.

At that riot, Israeli soldier Barel Hadaria Shmueli was shot in the head from point-blank range by a terrorist. He remains in critical condition.

A Palestinian man, identified as a member of Hamas' military wing, was also killed in that protest.

Hamas-linked terrorists also launched a number of incendiary balloons from Gaza Saturday afternoon, sparking two fires in southern Israel, according to the Israeli fire service.

Egypt has been trying to mediate a longer-term cease-fire between Israel and Hamas that appeared to be making progress last week when it pressured Hamas to restrain a border riot on Wednesday.

The following day, Israel said it was easing some of the commercial restrictions on Gaza, allowing vehicles, goods and equipment for rebuilding projects to enter the Palestinian enclave. Israel said the easing could expand further if things remain quiet.

The Israeli government reached an agreement with Qatar on August 19 allowing the Gulf country to resume aid payments to families in Gaza, a move aimed at reducing tensions with Hamas. Israel suspended aid payments in May, saying the move was necessary to ensure Hamas did not benefit from cash injections.

But Saturday night's protest indicated violence could soon escalate again.

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Palestinian rioters in the village of Beita in Samaria burned a swastika and Magen David Saturday night.

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For a few months now, residents of Beita have been confronting Israeli security forces in an effort to replicate the March of Returns seen on the Gaza Strip's border with Israel. Torch-holding rioters have set off fireworks in an attempt to intimidate and eventually vacate the nearby settlement outpost of Evyatar.

من فعاليات الإرباك الليلي في بيتا قرب البؤرة الاستيطاية على جبل صبيح. pic.twitter.com/YqXBfCWTQW

— وكالة شهاب للأنباء (@ShehabAgency) August 14, 2021

The Evyatar outpost was illegally erected in April following the murder of Yehuda Guetta in a terrorist attack at the Tapuach Junction in Samaria. It was evacuated in June and will remain under the control of the Israel Defenses Forces until the Civil Administration's planning committee completes its survey of the land.

In July, a Molotov cocktail thrown by rioters at security forces sparked a fire at Evyatar. While no one was injured in the incident, the firebombing did cause damage to two structures at the outpost.

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The death toll climbed to 72 from rioting in South Africa on Tuesday, with many people trampled to death during looting at stores, as police and the military fired stun grenades and rubber bullets to try to halt the unrest set off by the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma.

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More than 1,200 people have been arrested in the lawlessness that has raged in poor areas of two provinces, where a community radio station was ransacked and forced off the air Tuesday and some COVID-19 vaccination centers were closed, disrupting urgently needed inoculations.

Many of the deaths in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces occurred in chaotic stampedes as thousands of people stole food, electric appliances, liquor and clothing from stores, police Maj. Gen. Mathapelo Peters said in a statement Tuesday night.

In addition to the people crushed, he said police were investigating deaths caused by explosions when people tried to break into ATM machines, as well as other fatalities caused by shootings.

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The Shin Bet security agency and the Israel Police have solved the firebombing attack in the Jaffa neighborhood of Ajami that seriously injured a 12-year-old child. Three residents have been arrested on suspicion of carrying out attacks, planning additional attacks, and possessing illegal weapons.

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The suspects' arrest followed a monthlong investigation by the Shin Bet and the Tel Aviv District Police. An eyewitness to the attack reported seeing two masked men throw three Molotov cocktails, one toward 77 Kedem Street and another at a vehicle parked nearby. The eyewitness reported seeing a third suspect firebomb apartment on 75 Kedem Street. DNA belonging to the first suspect arrested in the attack was found on bottle fragments at the scene of the crime.

Police believe the first two suspects continued toward Ibn Sina Street, where they firebombed the home of a Jewish woman. A few minutes later, the suspects firebombed the home of 12-year-old Muhammad. Police were able to identify the suspects thanks to a scrap of paper inside a bucket the alleged attackers disposed of in a garbage can nearby. It was thanks to the DNA on that piece of paper that police were able to make the arrests.

According to police, the suspects are two brothers who planned to perpetrate attacks on Jews along with a friend of theirs from outside the Ajami neighborhood. They prepared the Molotov cocktails at the brothers' home and intentionally targeted Jewish homes in their attacks.

Two of the suspects in the attack have ties to organized crime, while the third is from a family that owns several businesses in Jaffa.

Police believe the attack, which severely injured a 12-year-old Arab Israeli boy and lightly wounded his 10-year old sister, was a case of mistaken identity. They say the suspect that threw the Molotov cocktail did not discern the Ramadan lights inside the victims' home. The father of one of the suspects' allegedly instructed his son to clean up the crime scene to ensure no incriminating evidence would be found.

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