Israel-Hamas

ISD is committed to providing timely and relevant intelligence and analysis to identify online threats stemming from the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. This page includes all of our latest analysis and commentary since the war erupted on 7 October 2023.

This Dispatch covers Israeli far-right extremism, including Kahanism, settler violence, far-right parties, and groups, with a focus on post-October 2023 developments.

Mis- and disinformation and conspiracy theories about the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel

One year after the October 7 attack, this study analyses mis- and disinformation, examining key actors and narratives distorting the Israel-Gaza conflict’s origins.

The German far-right’s digital push: Analysing the AfD’s campaign in Saxony and Thuringia

ISD looks at how far-right AfD strengthened its support in Saxony and Thuringia's state elections via a strong digital campaign mostly present on mainstream platforms.

Likely falsified Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps document claiming to organize pro-Palestine protest circulates online

This Dispatch explores how falsified documents in ‘hack & leak campaigns’ influence public opinion, analysing a likely false IRGC document about pro-Palestine protests.

Les retombées francophones : comprendre les récits promus par les extrémistes de droite au Québec autour du conflit Israel-Hamas

This briefing in French explores how Quebec’s French-speaking extremists engage with the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Advocates for Palestine and a multipolar world: Information operations by pro-CCP networks targeting Canada

This briefing details the engagement of pro-CCP actors, Chinese state media, and Canadian alternative media with the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Francophone fallout: Understanding narratives promoted by right-wing extremists in Quebec around the Israel-Hamas conflict

This briefing outlines how French-speaking right-wing extremists in Quebec have engaged with ongoing events related to the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Israel-Hamas conflict animates the reincarnated Canadian Jewish Defense League

Hamas’ 7 October attack on Israel and the subsequent IDF attacks in Gaza have energized Jewish Defense League (JDL) members, raising concerns about their narratives and tactics.

This briefing outlines ISD’s analysis of conversations related to the Israel-Hamas conflict shared by accounts associated with right-wing extremism in Canada.

Examining antisemitic and anti-Muslim hate speech on Canadian YouTube channels in the aftermath of 7 October

This article summarises the findings of a topic modelling analysis of antisemitic and anti-Muslim hate speech on Canadian YouTube comments in the aftermath of the 7 October attack.

Narratives of Hate: Post-7 October Antisemitism and Anti-Muslim Hate on Social Media

This report identifies and analyses the surge of both antisemitic and anti-Muslim hate speech in YouTube comments, with the aim of informing interventions and countermeasures.

‘This content isn’t available in Canada’: How Meta’s news ban is disrupting discourse about the Israel–Hamas war

In August, Meta began blocking news links & restricted media accounts in Canada to avoid paying for content. Weeks later, the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out. ISD analysis reveals low-quality, polarising sources have filled the info gap, leaving users vulnerable to misinformation & polarising content.

The flood of mis- and disinformation online following the death of Aaron Bushnell further underscores social platforms' challenges in dealing with false narratives in real-time.

Since October 7, there has been growing speculation about the evolving terrorism threat landscape. In this Dispatch, ISD reviews what we know and do not yet know about the changing UK terrorist threat.

This dispatch analyses how the Israel-Hamas war is being weaponised by pro-Kremlin actors targeting German audience.

Sensemaker

ISD’s Rashad Ali is a guest on Tortoise Media’s Sensemaker, discussing the UK government’s recent decision to designate the Islamist group Hizb-ut Tahrir as a terrorist organisation.

Following the recent antisemitic riots in the North Caucasus republic of Dagestan, Russian authorities blamed Ukraine and the West for fomenting tension. However, an ISD analysis of messages spread online in the weeks prior to the riots makes Kremlin’s claims look rather implausible.

VICE

VICE News covers a recent ISD investigation on a pro-CCP network using AI images and other tactics to promote anti-American sentiment abroad and deepen divides at home.

This Dispatch introduces an anti-Muslim hate speech classifier developed in collaboration with CASM Technology and presents the findings of the classifier of the over 115,000 anti-Muslim comments identified in the aftermath of October 7.

This briefing analyses how various ideological groups have found common group in promoting antisemitic conspiracy theories and expressions post-Hamas' October 7 attacks in Israel.

This Dispatch explores how a pro-CCP influence campaign commonly known as 'Spamouflage' is capitalising on the Israel-Hamas conflict to spread anti-US sentiment.

ISD's Zahed Amanullah will be speaking on Islamophobic and Antisemitic discourse on social media after the October 7th attacks on Israel by Hamas for the Bard Center for the Study of Hate (BCSH) in a webinar on Wednesday, December 20, 2023.

ISD analysis the types of online antisemitism seen in the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent conflict, in YouTube comments.

Der Terrorangriff der Hamas auf Israel am 7. Oktober hat auch in Deutschland extremistische Gruppierungen von verschiedenster Couleur auf den Plan gerufen.
Das ISD hat in diesem Digital Dispatch Online-Reaktionen von Links- und Rechtsextremist:innen, Islamist:innen sowie Verschwörungsideolog:innen auf den Konflikt gesammelt.

In this Dispatch, we explore the differences with comparing Hamas to ISIS when it comes to the recent conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Similar to extremist landscapes around the world, in Germany, the far right, far left, Islamist extremists & conspiracy theorists, are all using the Israel-Hamas conflict to further polarize political debate. ISD analyses those responses & their potential real-world impact in our latest Dispatch.

CNN

ISD’s Moustafa Ayad talks to CNN about the social phenomenon behind "Letter for America," a two-decade-old letter by Osama bin Laden that recently became a social media trend in light of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

NBC News

ISD’s Isabelle Frances-Wright speaks to NBC Nightly News about how Osama bin Laden’s “Letter to America” became popular on TikTok in the span of 48 hours and how social media platforms responded too late.

Since the Israel-Hamas war started, far-right extremist networks in the UK have capitalised on the ongoing conflict and reduced the war into three simplistic narratives: anti-Muslim, antisemitic and anti-migration hostility.

Almost 13 years after his death, Osama bin Laden is trending on social media in the wake of the Israel-Hamas conflict because of his “Letter to America,” a 2002 screed that justified al-Qaeda’s 9/11 attacks on the US.

iNews

ISD's Jacob Davey spoke to iNews about extremists groups' varying reactions to the conflict between Israel and Hamas, describing it as a "field day."

ABC News

ISD’s research on the Israel-Hamas conflict was featured in ABC News along with commentary from ISD’s Executive Director at ISD for Africa, the Middle East and Africa (AMEA) Moustafa Ayad.

Neo-Nazi accelerationists have been expressing support for the terrorist group Hamas ever since their October 7 attacks on Israel, converging on shared antisemitic ideologies in an attempt to recruit and radicalize for their own cause.

In light of the Israel-Hamas war, swathes of US news-seekers have turned to social media influencers for the latest updates on the conflict. However, they will find a cruel battlefield of another kind.

A broad range of Islamist extremists (including proscribed terrorist groups) have responded to Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent Israeli assault on Gaza. Although there was uniform support for the Palestinians and condemnation of Israel, there were also key divergences across this broad spectrum of actors.

CBS News

ISD's Hannah Rose speaks to CBS' Face the Nation about our investigations on the rise of online antisemitism and anti-Muslim hate speech following Hamas' terrorist attack.

NYT

Our investigation on Russia, China and Iran's role in the information war surrounding the Israel-Hamas conflict features in the New York Times.

Following Hamas’ terrorist attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, and the subsequent Israel-Hamas war that has erupted in the region, ISD has observed a disturbing 422% increase in language associated with anti-Muslim hate online.

The 7 Oct Hamas attack in Israel has echoed a known pattern online, with ISD analysis finding a 50-fold increase in antisemitic comments on YouTube, as well as spikes on alt-tech platforms.

Euronews

Euronews covers ISD's investigation on the rise in online antisemitism on both mainstream and fringe social media platforms following Hamas’ terrorist attack on 7 October.

Euronews

Euronews covers our recent ISD investigation on China, Russia, and Iran's exploitation of the current information chaos surrounding the Israel-Hamas conflict in order to further their geopolitical agendas.

Iranian, Chinese and Russian officials, diplomatic representatives and state media are spinning the Israel-Hamas conflict to their benefit, often advancing anti-US, anti-Ukraine framing.

New research by ISD reveals violent and graphic content of the Gaza conflict is being served to minors' accounts on Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat, despite all platforms having clear policies and features designed to protect younger users from such content.

NYT

Our study on the accessibility of graphic and violent material by accounts set up as minors on Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok is covered by the New York Times.

NYT

ISD analysts found that in one 24-hour period, a sample of pro-Hamas posts reached over 16M views on X despite the majority violating the platform's policies.

Le Figaro

Moustafa Ayad, ISD's Executive Director of Africa, the Middle East and Asia, spoke to French newspaper Le Figaro about the differences between Hamas and Islamic State.

POLITICO

In light of recent pro-Palestine protests, POLITICO features our Explainer on far-left antisemitism, explaining how there has been a long history of conflating Jews, Zionism and Israel among political circles.

X [formerly Twitter] is an epicentre for content praising the attacks perpetrated by the Hamas-linked al-Qassem Brigades, generating millions of views in single 24-hour period, while escaping any moderation of any kind.

NPR

ISD's Executive Director for Africa, the Middle East and Asia, Moustafa Ayad, spoke to NPR about the dangers in unverified sources being left to gain traction freely online in the middle of an information void.