Elon Musk sparked a backlash in Germany after calling the chancellor an ‘incompetent fool’ and backing the far-right AfD party

• Elon Musk has sparked a backlash in Germany after calling on the chancellor to step down and support the AfD.

• The German health minister said Musk “should not interfere in our politics.”

• It comes as right-wing leaders in Europe launch an attack on a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany.

Elon Musk has sparked controversy in Germany after calling Chancellor Olaf Scholz an “incompetent fool” and supporting the country’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

In a post on X, Musk first shared a video of right-wing influencer Naomi Seibt criticizing Friedrich Merz, one of the leading candidates to become Germany’s next chancellor.

“Only the AfD can save Germany,” Musk, who is the richest person in the world, wrote alongside the post.

Musk then weighed news of a attack on Friday at a Christmas market in the eastern German city of Magdeburg, killing at least five people.

Musk retweeted a post purportedly showing a photo of the suspect saying the attack was a “DIRECT RESULT of mass uncontrolled immigration.”

“Scholz should resign immediately. Incompetent fool,” Musk added in a separate post.

Leading right-wing figures across Europe have seized on the incident to fuel anti-immigrant rhetoric and call for tighter border controls.

Musk’s comments, which come just two months before Germany is due to hold a snap federal election, have sparked a backlash in the country.

Scholz appeared to react indirectly at a press conference in Berlin, saying: “We have freedom of speech here. That also applies to multimillionaires. Freedom of speech also means that you are able to say things that are not right and do not contain good political advice,’ per the guardian.

Karl Lauterbach, the German health minister, said on X that Musk “should not interfere in our politics,” adding that “his platform profits from hatred and incitement and radicalizes people.”

The AfD party was established in 2013 as an anti-euro party, but it has since focused more on immigration and has been seen as increasingly far-right.

However, Musk has previously questioned how far-right the party’s politics are.

In a post on X in June, he wrote: “Why is there such a negative reaction from some about the AfD?”

“They keep saying ‘far right’, but the politics of the AfD, which I’ve read about, doesn’t sound extremist. Maybe I’m missing something,” he added.

Tesla’s CEO has shown growing support for right-wing leaders, including Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Nigel Farage, leader of Britain’s Reform Party.

Earlier this week, Farage boasted that Musk was “right behind” him and suggested the tech mogul could support his party financially.

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