President Mahmoud Abbas, the 87-year-old veteran who has led the Palestinian Authority for nearly two decades, is trending on Palestinian social media -- but not in the way he might like.

It’s a sad inevitability that the big names defending Russell Brand are some of the most influential in the world. Elon Musk and Andrew Tate – two of the most Googled people on the planet – have already publicly backed the 48-year-old comedian, as have those great champions of right-wing and conservative conspiracy theories: Alex Jones, Ben Shapiro and Tucker Carlson. And so it comes as no surprise that Pearl Davis, the woman who proudly owns the nickname “the female Andrew Tate”, is the latest red pill ideologist to throw her support behind Brand, who vehemently denies all the allegations made against him. In a YouTube video shared with her 1.8 million YouTube subscribers, Davis announced that “the Matrix is coming after him” and that he is the victim of a “mainstream media” witchhunt. And whilst many of us simply roll our eyes at such warcries from the internet’s self-styled “anti-establishment” fighters, Davis’s arguments in support of Brand should be a genuine cause of concern. She asks in her monologue: “Why would a man that is rich and famous need to rape anybody? [...] Why would a guy need to assault or rape anybody in order to get sex that's having it thrown at him 24/7?” Then, offering an analogy to hit home her point, she adds: “This is the equivalent of me being a billionaire and getting accused of robbing a bank.” Russell Brand Is Being Attacked... www.youtube.com Now, you may gape in horror and disbelief at such base and ignorant “reasoning”, this same logic is applied again and again, getting countless alledged predators off the hook. Indeed, Safe Horizon – the largest victim assistance charity in the US – addressed the issue in a poignant piece back in 2018 titled ‘Why Does the Myth That Attractive Men ‘Don't Have to Rape’ Persist?’ In the first-hand account, writer Jeena Sharma explains that her earliest memory of suffering sexual assault was at the hands of her piano teacher, who was “seemingly handsome, smart and kind, with a daughter of his own”. She said she never told her parents, “not because they wouldn’t care but because [she] felt ashamed and mostly confused”. After all, “how could this man [...] do something that I would only expect from a creepy stranger in an alley?” Sharma went on to cite the example of former NFL player Darren Sharper, who was sentenced to 18 years in prison and accused of drugging and raping as many as 16 women back in 2016. She pointed out that at the time, the judge sentencing Sharper expressed her disbelief at his crimes, saying she couldn’t understand how someone who was college-educated and had grown up “in one of the most loving households” could carry out such atrocities. Russell Brand has strongly denied the accusations against him. Rape Crisis offers support for those affected by rape and sexual abuse. You can call them on 0808 802 9999 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, and 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland, or visit their website at www.rapecrisis.org.uk.If you are in the US, you can call Rainn on 800-656-HOPE (4673). Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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Elon Musk pleaded with X users on Sunday to try and stick to the facts, as the site and its billionaire owner come under heavy criticism for the spread of false information regarding the Israel-Hamas war. “As always, please try stay as close to the truth as possible, even for stuff you don’t like,” Mr Musk wrote on X. “This platform aspires to maximize signal/noise of the human collective.” Critics have been hammering Mr Musk for the proliferation of fake news on the site, arguing his attempts to loosen the reins on its content moderation have allowed bad actors and dubious sources to flourish. “This site is a cesspool of disinformation,” former Obama administration official and podcaster Tommy Vietor wrote on X in response to Mr Musk’s plea. “You have made it exponentially worse, and just this morning you recommended an account known to spread lies and antisemitism. Other than that, great job.” “This site is worse than useless during a breaking news story,” Aaron Kleinman, of the States Project political advocacy group, wrote recently in response to a thread collecting false information about the war in Israel and Gaza. “Actively harmful. Don’t log in if you want to be informed.” Dubious news stories have spread far and wide on the site formerly known as Twitter since the outbreak of war in Israel yesterday. A widely seen video, purporting to show a Hamas militant shooting down an Israeli helicopter, was really a clip from a video game, BBC Verify’s Shayan Sardarizadeh reports. A Taliban spokesperson had to set the record straight after a false claim spread on social media that the group was seeking to join in the conflict, Pakistan bureau chief for WIONews Anas Mallick reports. And a widely shared clip of Israel reportedly bombing a Gazan office tower really was from fighting that occured in 2021. Critics of X allege that policy changes under Mr Musk have allowed such false information to spread more easily. Since taking over, Mr Musk has disbanded Twitter’s trust and safety team, reinstated (and at times vocally endorsed the content of) known extremists and far-right commentators, removed labels noting accounts associated with foreign governments, and allowed paid access to the verification feature, a designation on Twitter previously reserved for heads of states, celebrities, journalists, and other high-profile individuals who could see their credibility abused by imitators. The Independent has contacted X for comment. Read More Israel-Palestine conflict live: Fierce gun battles rage with Hamas militants as ‘over 700 Israelis killed’ Israel suffers bloodiest day in decades as fierce gunfights rage in streets against Hamas militants US regulators seek to compel Elon Musk to testify in their investigation of his Twitter acquisition

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