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Taylor Swift’s rumored boyfriend, Matty Healy, once gave a Hitler salute on stage and posted a ‘List of Jews’ to Instagram
(JTA) — These have been a wild few years for Matty Healy, the outspoken lead singer of the English pop rock band The 1975.
His group has released a string of acclaimed albums that went to the top of the British charts. But at the same time, Healy has cultivated a reputation as an offensive provocateur due to a series of statements and actions that have angered Jews and other minorities.
Now he is back in the headlines as the rumored new boyfriend of pop megastar Taylor Swift, and many diehard Swift fans — known as “Swifties” — are not happy. In describing their anger about the pairing, some Swifties are calling Healy “antisemitic,” in addition to Islamophobic, racist and other negative labels.
At a concert days before International Holocaust Remembrance Day in January, Healy gave what appeared to be a Nazi salute, an act that quickly went viral. He made the gesture while singing the line “Thank you, Kanye, very cool” in the song “Love It If We Made It.” The gesture could have been a reference to rapper Kanye West’s series of antisemitic statements last year, which included praising Hitler.
But many fans maintained that Healy should have avoided the gesture, which could have been seen by viewers who were unfamiliar with its context. Some began calling him antisemitic.
“Satire or not, this is irresponsible and super lame to do on stage in front of a crowd of people,” one Twitter user wrote, according to The Independent.
Days later, Healy confused fans by posting an Instagram story, without context, with a screenshot of a Wikipedia article titled “Lists of Jews.” The article links to other Wikipedia articles that list famous Jews in Hollywood, politics and more.
Social media users were critical of the post, pointing to the fact that it could have been a reference to the Nazis’ policy of maintaining lists of Jews during World War II.
this goes back literal milennia and in a present day context it harkens to the antis3m3tic concepts of a “global kabal,” world domination/new world order, etc……i’m truly speechless. like why else would matty, as a non-jewish person, have posted that? to be ~rAnDoM~? no justin its a straight up d0g whistle
(Healy has also criticized U.S. Republicans for invoking Holocaust comparisons in the context of their opposition to abortion rights.)
These were far from the first controversies surrounding Healy, a fervent atheist who nonetheless admits he has a “Messiah” complex. After a 2019 interview, fans called him Islamophobic for referencing Islam and then saying “I have to get up every day and read something abhorrent that’s happened in the name of religion.” In a podcast appearance in February, he mocked Japanese people and the ethnicity of Ice Spice, an American rapper with African American and Dominican ancestry (whom he called “Inuit”). In light of her connection to Healy, Swift is now drawing scrutiny for collaborating with Ice Spice.
Healy’s charged statements about porn and his treatment of women fans — some of whom he has approached and kissed on his band’s recent tour — have also drawn condemnation.
In an open letter to the pop star last week, a group of Swift fans wrote that Healy’s past comments have hurt members of the “Jewish, Black, Chinese, Hawaiian, Inuit, LGBTQ+ communities, as well as women.”
Another thing that many Swifties point out: Healy was years ago also rumored to be dating Swift, but denied rumors by saying that being her boyfriend “would have been emasculating for me.”
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The post Taylor Swift’s rumored boyfriend, Matty Healy, once gave a Hitler salute on stage and posted a ‘List of Jews’ to Instagram appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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UK Prosecutors Try to Reinstate Terrorism Charge Against Kneecap Rapper
Member of Kneecap Liam O’Hanna, also known as Liam Og O hAnnaidh and performing under the name of Mo Chara, speaks to supporters outside Woolwich Crown Court, after a UK court threw out his prosecution for a terrorism offense, in London, Britain, Sept. 26, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Hannah McKay
British prosecutors sought to reinstate a terrorism charge against a member of Irish rap group Kneecap on Wednesday for displaying a flag of Iran-backed Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah at a London gig, after a court threw out the case last year.
Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, whose stage name is Mo Chara, was accused of having waved the flag of the banned Islamist group Hezbollah during a November 2024 gig.
The charge was thrown out in September after a court ruled it had originally been brought without the permission of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Attorney General, and also one day outside the six-month statutory limit.
But the Crown Prosecution Service said it would challenge the ruling and its lawyer Paul Jarvis told London’s High Court on Wednesday that permission was only required by the time Ó hAnnaidh first appeared in court, meaning the case can proceed.
Kneecap – known for their politically charged lyrics and anti-Israel activism – have said the case is an attempt to distract from what they described as British complicity in Israel’s so-called “genocide” in Gaza. Israel strongly denies committing a genocide in the coastal territory, where it launched a military campaign against Hamas after the Palestinian terrorist group invaded Israeli territory.
J.J. Ó Dochartaigh, who goes by DJ Próvaí, was in court but Ó hAnnaidh was not required to attend and was not present.
KNEECAP SAYS PROSECUTION A DISTRACTION
Ó hAnnaidh was charged in May with displaying the Hezbollah flag in such a way that aroused reasonable suspicion that he supported the banned group, after footage emerged of him holding the flag on stage while saying “Up Hamas, up Hezbollah.”
Kneecap have previously said the flag was thrown on stage during their performance and that they “do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hezbollah.”
The group, who rap about Irish identity and support the republican cause of uniting Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland, have become increasingly vocal about the war in Gaza, particularly after Ó hAnnaidh was charged in May.
During their performance at June’s Glastonbury Festival in England, Ó hAnnaidh accused Israel of committing war crimes, after Kneecap displayed pro-Palestinian messages during their set at the Coachella Festival in California in April.
Kneecap have since been banned from Hungary and Canada, also canceling a tour of the United States due to a clash with Ó hAnnaidh’s court appearances.
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German-Israel Deal Strengthens Cyber Defense, German Minister Says
A German and Israeli flag fly, on the day Chancellor Friedrich Merz meets with Israeli President Isaac Herzog for talks, in Berlin, Germany, May 12, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Liesa Johannssen
A new German-Israel agreement aims to counter cyber threats and enhance security infrastructure, German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told parliament on Wednesday.
Dobrindt signed the agreement with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem over the weekend.
The collaboration includes the development of a joint “cyber dome” system, an artificial intelligence and cyber innovation center, drone defense cooperation, and improved civilian warning systems.
“We have already had a trusting partnership in the past, which we want to strengthen further,” Dobrindt said. “Israel has extensive experience in cyber defense. We want to benefit from that.”
The German Interior Ministry said on Monday the agreement would extend to protecting energy infrastructure and connected vehicle networks, in addition to enhancing collaboration in civil protection, counter-terrorism, and criminal prosecution.
European countries are facing increasing pressure to fortify their cyber defense systems against sophisticated attacks.
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France Explores Sending Eutelsat Terminals to Iran Amid Internet Blackout
French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot attends the questions to the government session at the National Assembly in Paris, France, Jan. 13, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq
France is looking into sending Eutelsat satellite terminals to Iran to help citizens after Iranian authorities imposed a blackout of internet services in a bid to quell the country’s most violent domestic unrest in decades.
“We are exploring all options, and the one you have mentioned is among them,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday in the lower house after a lawmaker asked whether France would send Eutelsat gear to Iran.
Backed by the French and British governments, Eutelsat owns OneWeb, the only low Earth orbit constellation, or group of satellites, besides Elon Musk’s Starlink.
The satellites are used to beam internet service from space, providing broadband connectivity to businesses, governments, and consumers in underserved areas.
Iranian authorities in recent days have launched a deadly crackdown that has reportedly killed thousands during protests against clerical rule, and imposed a near-complete shutdown of internet service.
Still, some Iranians have managed to connect to Starlink satellite internet service, three people inside the country said.
Even Starlink service appears to be reduced, Alp Toker, founder of internet monitoring group NetBlocks said earlier this week.
Eutelsat declined to comment when asked by Reuters about Barrot’s remarks and its activities in Iran.
Starlink’s more than 9,000 satellites allow higher speeds than Eutelsat‘s fleet of over 600, and its terminals connecting users to the network are cheaper and easier to install.
Eutelsat also provides internet access to Ukraine’s military, which has relied on Starlink to maintain battlefield connectivity throughout the war with Russia.
Independent satellite communications adviser Carlos Placido said OneWeb terminals are bulkier than Starlink’s and easier to jam.
“The sheer scale of the Starlink constellation makes jamming more challenging, though certainly not impossible,” Placido said. “With OneWeb it is much easier to predict which satellite will become online over a given location at a given time.”