He is a close ally of conservative U.S. President Donald Trump and has, much to the ire of Scholz, spent the past few weeks boosting the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party ahead of a national snap election on Feb. 23. The AfD is currently riding high in polls ahead of the vote.

An activist group projected a photo of billionaire Elon Musk making a controversial gesture that resembled a Roman salute on a Tesla factory near Berlin this week, with a single word above the world’s richest man: “Heil.

An image of Elon Musk making a controversial salute during a speech on Monday was projected onto Tesla's Gigafactory in Berlin. The display featured Musk's gesture alongside the words "Heil Tesla." Newsweek reached out to Tesla's communications team for comment on Wednesday.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday sharply criticized Elon Musk's backing of the right-wing parties in the European Union, calling it "really disgusting" and said it was hindering democracy in the bloc.

The billionaire was received by cheers while addressing a rally for Alternative for Germany where he told attendees they shouldn’t be ashamed of their history.

Elon Musk can try to trick gamers, to argue with them, to post their DMs against his own Terms of Service. But more than liberals and Tesla-haters and all other groups he’s in conflict with, this is one battle he’s never going to win.

“Elon Musk was criticised for his speech at a rally after the inauguration in which he appears to give the Nazi salute. But come on, Elon Musk is not a Nazi,” Che said of the man behind the much maligned Cybertruck. “The Nazis made nice cars,” quipped Che, referencing the origins of Volkswagen.

Musk's support for AfD has helped what was once a fringe political party enter the mainstream, lifting it up in front of a global audience.

Acknowledgement of the dark past of the country” is vital, says the chair of Israel’s Holocaust remembrance center.

BERLIN - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Tuesday sharply criticized Elon Musk's backing of the right-wing parties in the European Union, calling it \"really disgusting\" and said it was hindering democracy in the bloc.

His comments to the hard-right Alternative for Germany party escalated efforts by the billionaire to influence the country’s election for chancellor next month.