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By Mandy Taheri
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Luke Yarwood, a 36-year-old U.K. resident, has been sentenced to over a year in prison for making two social media posts inciting racial hatred and anti-immigrant sentiment after last year’s deadly Christmas market car attack in Germany, according to The Telegraph.
Why It Matters
A man is accused of driving a car into a busy outdoor Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, on December 20, killing six people—a 9-year-old and five women—while injuring more than 300. The suspect, Taleb Al-Abdulmohsen, 51, is on trial and could face life imprisonment if convicted. He moved to Germany as a refugee from Saudi Arabia in 2006 and has been working as a psychiatrist for several years.
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Judge Jonathan Fuller sentenced Yarwood to 18 months in prison for the two posts, which has renewed debate in the U.K. over hate speech and criminal sentencing. Some on the right have criticized the sentence as excessive, pointing to different criminal cases in which defendants received shorter punishments.
What To Know
Yarwood wrote in an X reply to a post about the 2024 Christmas market attack that people should go to migrant hotels and “burn them to the ground,” The Telegraph reported.
In a second post, he wrote, per The Telegraph, “I think it’s time for the British to gang together, hit the streets and start the slaughter. Violence and murder is the only way now. Start off burning every migrant hotel then head off to MPs’ houses and Parliament, we need to take over by FORCE.”
The posts at issue were made from December 21 to January 29 and reported to police by Yarwood's brother-in-law after only being viewed 33 times, according to The Telegraph.
Yarwood’s lawyer in court noted the low visibility of the posts, saying the minimal views show that his posts were the “impotent rantings of a socially isolated man,” the outlet reported. Prosecutors countered that his other posts have more views and since one of his replies was in response to a news outlet, it was more public-facing. According to the prosecution, he had a history of anti-immigrant rhetoric and posts.
He pleaded guilty to two counts of publishing written material to stir up racial hatred, the Bournemouth Daily Echo reported.
Fuller said Yarwood had a “preoccupation with immigrants and particular obsession with Islam and some extreme Right-wing views," adding that the social media posts are "odious in the extreme."
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What People Are Saying
Mario Nawfal, Lebanese-Australian entrepreneur, business professional and political commentator, in an X post in part: “WELCOME TO THE UK: TWITTER USER JAILED FOR 18 MONTHS OVER 2 ANTI-IMMIGRATION TWEETS WITH JUST 33 VISUALIZATIONS. A man sits in a prison cell today, not for assault, not for arson, not for inciting a riot, but for 2 tweets with just 33 visualizations. Luke Yarwood, a socially isolated man from Dorset, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for posts deemed to have "stirred up racial hatred" in the wake of a deadly car attack in Germany. The tweets were vile, no question. But 33 views? Reported by his own brother-in-law? This is justice?”
Fuller, per The Telegraph: "You are entitled to express your views, but freedom of speech is not an absolute right, it’s a qualified one. What the law prohibits is the stirring up of racial hatred. The continuing safety and stability of our communities are undermined by actions such as yours. The tweets speak for themselves, they are odious in the extreme. There could be few clearer examples of words specifically designed to stir up racial hatred and incite violence.”
Far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, in an X post: "Another day in Starmer's regime, Britain A man who posted two "anti-immigration" 𝕏 posts that were viewed just 33 times has been jailed for "stirring up racial hatred". Luke Yarwood, 36, received an 18-month sentence after tweeting in the wake of the Christmas market car attack in Magdeburg, Germany, in December 2024. His posts were reported to the police by Yarwood's own brother-in-law who he did not get on with."
What Happens Next
Yarwood was jailed at Bournemouth Crown Court on Wednesday, according to local media.
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