In a criminal complaint submitted to French authorities, J.K. Rowling and Elon Musk are mentioned in relation to purported “acts of aggravated cyber harassment” directed at Algerian boxer and recent Olympic champion Imane Khelif. Variety was informed by Nabil Boudi, Khelif’s French-based attorney, that both individuals were referenced in the complaint’s body, which was uploaded to the Paris Prosecutor’s Office’s anti-online hate centre on Friday.
The Paris Prosecutor’s Office (National Center for the Fight Against Online Hatred) acknowledged receiving Khelif’s accusation and declared the start of an inquiry in a statement provided to Variety. The action was brought against X, which indicates that it was brought against an unknown person in accordance with French law. This “ensure[s] that the ‘prosecution has all the latitude to be able to investigate against all people,'” according to Boudi, including anyone who could have used a pseudonym to write offensive messages. However, the lawsuit makes reference to well-known contentious personalities.
“J. K. Rowling and Elon Musk are named in the lawsuit, among others,” he stated, noting that the inquiry would include Donald Trump. “Trump tweeted, so whether or not he is named in our lawsuit, he will inevitably be looked into as part of the prosecution.” Khelif, who claimed the gold medal in the women’s 66-kilogram boxing event on Saturday, was at the heart of a contentious and noisy controversy regarding her gender classification for the majority of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, which had international repercussions.
Khelif was subjected to a barrage of allegations and harassment over her gender, even though she was born a woman, never identified as transgender or intersex, and had the support of the International Olympic Committee, who declared that “scientifically, this is not a man fighting a woman.”
The majority of the attacks were made on social media, especially on X/Twitter, and when well-known people entered the debate, it became more heated. Posting a photo from Khelif’s bout with Italian boxer Angela Carini, Rowling accused the former opponent of being a man who was “enjoying the distress of a woman he’s just punched in the head” in a message to her 14.2 million followers. Musk, on the other hand, reposted a statement made by swimmer Riley Gaines, according to which “men don’t belong in women’s sports.”
“Absolutely,” the X owner wrote as his co-signer on the correspondence. Trump wrote, “I will keep men out of women’s sports!” along with a photo from their altercation with Carina.
However, Boudi believes that some apologies, including the ones that Khelif has personally received from well-known people who have tweeted disparaging remarks, would not affect the course of the investigation. He declared, “The lawsuit is filed and the facts remain.”