Martina Navratilova blasts $335B-worth Elon Musk for reportedly defunding task force dedicated to rescuing kidnapped Ukrainian children

Tennis great Martina Navratilova has come out in indignation over allegations that tech magnate Elon Musk, as chief of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), reportedly canceled funding for a vital unit that was tasked with finding and freeing Ukrainian children who have been kidnapped by Russia. She was blunt, describing the action as one of "cruelty."

The scandal arose from a recent budget reduction by Musk, which led to the laying off of a task force run by Yale University's Humanitarian Research Lab (HRL). It has played a central role in tracking down and facilitating the repatriation of children abducted by Russian troops since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

Navratilova, a long-time human rights champion and vocal critic of $335.2 billion (as per Forbes) Musk, expressed her outrage on X. Responding to the exclusive iPaper report, she posted:

"Cruelty is the f**king point!!!!"

It has been reported that more than 20,000 children have been forcefully taken from their native land, and many have undergone Russian indoctrination. The HRL task force, in collaboration with the Bring Kids Back UA campaign led by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, managed to repatriate about 1,240 kids.

The move to disband the HRL task force follows broader realignments in US foreign policy during the current administration. In perhaps the most dramatic instance, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy was said to have been ejected from the White House following disagreements with President Trump and Vice President JD Vance, signaling a frostier US-Ukraine relationship.

Meanwhile, arrest warrants have been issued by the International Criminal Court for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his commissioner of children's rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, over the forced transfer of Ukrainian children on a massive scale.

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Martina Navratilova blasted Elon Musk after Starlink landed FAA deal, slamming it as the ‘biggest grift of all time’

In Picture: Martina Navratilova during the 2024 Laureus World Sports Awards (Source: Getty)

Martina Navratilova took a jab at Elon Musk’s Starlink, calling its new FAA contract the "biggest grift of all time." She reacted to the reports that SpaceX’s satellite internet service could take over a $2 billion FAA deal originally awarded to Verizon in 2023 to modernize air traffic communications. The FAA is testing Starlink’s satellite terminals in Atlantic City and two sites in Alaska to evaluate their integration into its network.

Responding to the news, the 18-time Grand Slam champion took to X and wrote:

"Wow… this grift is the biggest grift of all time."

Martina Navratilova also called out Elon Musk for 'lying' about Democrats allegedly paying illegal immigrants to influence elections.