The government of the United Kingdom warned its citizens this week to be careful of posting material deemed offensive — threatening imprisonment for those who incite “hatred.”

The Crown Prosecution Service posted a warning to social media platform X on Wednesday warning citizens to “Think before you post!” amid ongoing riots that have fractured the country’s polity.

“Content that incites violence or hatred isn’t just harmful – it can be illegal,” the government agency wrote. “The CPS takes online violence seriously and will prosecute when the legal test is met. Remind those close to you to share responsibly or face the consequences.”

UK GOVERNMENT ‘SCOURING SOCIAL MEDIA’ TO ARREST PEOPLE FOR SHARING ‘HARMFUL’ RIOT FOOTAGE REGARDLESS OF INTENT

The CPS added, “The British government is cracking down on people who share social media posts about the U.K. riots that it judges are ‘likely to start racial hatred.’”

The post was then amplified by the GOV.UK website’s official account.

Riots have broken out across the U.K. in recent days over a mass stabbing at a Taylor Swift-themed dance event that left three girls dead and others wounded. 

UK NEWS OUTLET CUTS LIVE FEED AFTER REPORTER IS SURROUNDED BY MASKED MEN SHOUTING ‘FREE PALESTINE’

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer (C) listens to Commander Ben Russell (L) next to Metropolitan Police Commissioner Mark Rowley (back) during a visit to Lambeth Police Headquarters in London on August 9, 2024. Starmer said that authorities “have to stay on high alert going into this weekend”, amid fears of further far-right riots in English towns and cities.  (TOBY MELVILLE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

The murders, allegedly committed by a now 18-year-old British citizen born to Rwandan parents, sparked a series of violent protests that tapped into broader concerns about the scale of immigration in the U.K.

Footage of the violent clashes involving anti-immigration protesters and the groups of counter-protesters, some of whom have been seen waving Palestinian flags, has gone viral on social media, and the government is warning that sharing such content may have serious consequences.

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Counterprotesters gather at Guildhall square to face off right-wing protesters after they announced a protest in Plymouth, United Kingdom. (Photo by Behlul Cetinkaya/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The director of public prosecutions of England and Wales, Stephen Parkinson, previously warned against “publishing or distributing material which is insulting or abusive which is intended to or likely to start racial hatred. So, if you retweet that, then you’re republishing that and then potentially you’re committing that offense [incitement to racial hatred].”

He added further, “We do have dedicated police officers who are scouring social media. Their job is to look for this material, and then follow up with identification, arrests, and so forth.”

Fox News Digital’s Alexander Hall contributed to this report.

Italy’s beach managers, or “balneari”, folded up their banana loungers and closed their umbrellas for two hours on Friday in protest at a new licensing law.

Italy’s coveted private beach licenses allow proprietors to seal off prized seafront space and rent out areas for sun loungers and beach umbrellas. These permits have been typically handed down through families and monopolised for generations — until now.

Starting early next year, under a law passed by Rome in compliance with EU regulations, beach club proprietors will have to apply for permits via new tender processes.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has faced mounting pressure to create a fairer playing field for the tightly-controlled beach real estate market since the EU’s top court ruled in 2023 that licences should not be automatically renewed.

The European Court of Justice ruled that Rome must comply with decades-old EU legislation, also known as the Bolkestein Directive, which aims to remove barriers to the bloc’s trade and services while increasing transparency.

Previous governments have dragged their feet on implementing the process, but Brussels has demonstrated it is keen to apply pressure — and ready to hand out fines — to liberalise Italy’s seafronts.

The directive covers everything from the construction sector to the tourism industry, including Italy’s privatised beaches, a stretch of highly profitable sand occupying 50% of the country’s coastline, according to the Italian environmental association Legambiente.

Valentina Fabbri is the president of Italian hospitality advocacy organisation Ostia Fiumicino Confesercenti. She said 30,000 businesses and workers will be left in the lurch by the new system, which only guarantees year-long licenses.

“We are asking the government for a concrete, practical commitment,” she said.

Speaking on Ostia beach near Rome, Fabri addded that business owners who have invested on these shorelines for generations also deserve reimbursement.

Ruggero Barbadoro, President of Rome’s Confesercenti Fiba — a confederation representing commercial, tourist and service operators in the bathing sector — said the recent legislative shift had caused “problems” that spurred on the nationwide protest.

“Closing the umbrella until 9:30am is symbolic,” he said.

“But the real protest is that no one is giving us a chance to be able to renew the concessions and work and see a future [and] guarantee us a future.”

Beachgoers are sympathetic to the concerns of the balneari, with one at Ostia describing the protest as “very fair”.

Another argued the protest is “legitimate” because business owners have had their legs “cut off” by the new laws, which not only impact them but have a knock-on effect on lifeguards, cleaners and other seasonal employees.

The handoff of the Summer Olympic Games from Paris to Los Angeles just got a lot louder. Performances by Billie Eilish, Snoop Dogg and the Red Hot Chili Peppers are expected to be featured in the Closing Ceremony of the Paris games on Sunday, multiple sources told Variety. 

All three artists will be seen from Los Angeles in a mix of pre-taped and live performances. Producer Ben Winston, who is no stranger to live music events as the producer of the Grammy Awards and CBS’ 2021 “Adele: One Night Only” special, is coordinating with French producers of the Closing Ceremony. 

Tensions are high around live music events this week after authorities in Austria thwarted a terrorist attack plot during Taylor Swift’s planned three-night stand in Vienna with her “The Eras Tour.” Two high-ranking Individuals familiar with the planning for the surprise L.A. concert stunt said security and crowd control has been a point of concern for local officials even before the alarming news from Vienna. Security, which doesn’t come cheap, will have to account for potential threats from air, land and sea in Los Angeles. In a nod to those heightened fears, Variety has agreed to withhold the location of the performance.

Representatives for the Olympics and the musical artists declined to comment.

At the Closing Ceremony, the musical performances from Los Angeles are expected to follow a much-hyped stunt from Tom Cruise, news of which leaked last week. Cruise will jump on his motorcycle for an average day of death-defying tricks in France, before tossing to a prerecorded package that will see him parachute down next to the iconic Hollywood sign. The L.A.-affiliated musicians will take it from there.

It’s not hard to figure why Eilish, Snoop and the Chili Peppers were chosen. Eilish, one of the biggest pop sensations of the past decade, is a native whose 2021 concert film was titled “Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles.” Snoop Dogg, who has become an absolute internet darling in his role as on-air personality for NBC during the Paris Games, hails from Long Beach and is synonymous with West Coast rap. The Chili Peppers emerged out of L.A.’s punk scene in the 1980s. The band’s 1999 hit “Californication” is an anthem for the milk, honey, fruits and nuts that Los Angeles shelters. 

At the end of Sunday’s Closing Ceremony, Los Angles Mayor Karen Bass will accept the Olympic Torch and bring it home (maybe in her carry-on luggage?) as she returns from Paris. As of next week, the city of Los Angeles has three years and 11 months to get ready for the Summer Games, which are scheduled to run from July 14 to July 30 in 2028.

(Pictured: Billie Eilish, Snoop Dogg and Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers)