French Report: Israeli, US Accounts Spread Hostile Messages During Riots
Translated & summarized from Behadrei Haredim by baba
Accounts linked to Israel and the US MAGA movement spread hostile messages during recent French riots, according to a French Foreign Ministry assessment. Top Israeli posts on X gained over 35 million views, linking riots to immigration and Islam. A separate EU report identified a Russian network spreading disinformation, but neither report found evidence of foreign initiation of the protests. President Macron noted foreign information influence but no overt interference.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Israeli and US MAGA accounts spread hostile messages during French riots, a French report states.
- Top Israeli posts on X garnered over 35 million views, linking riots to immigration and Islam.
- A Russian network, "Operation Overload," also spread disinformation, according to an EU assessment.
- Neither the French nor the EU report found evidence that foreign actors initiated the protests.
- President Macron acknowledged foreign information influence but no overt foreign interference.
Accounts linked to Israeli entities, alongside those associated with the American MAGA movement, disseminated hostile messages during the riots that erupted in France last month, according to an internal assessment by the French Foreign Ministry revealed by Reuters. The top ten most viewed posts on X (formerly Twitter) published by Israeli sources, including officials, government accounts, media outlets, and influencers, garnered over 35 million views between October 16 and 18. For comparison, the top ten posts from MAGA-affiliated sources accumulated more than 49 million views during the same period. These messages linked the riots to immigration and radical Islam. However, the French document does not claim that Israeli actors initiated or escalated the unrest on the ground.
Separately, an internal European Union assessment pointed to the activity of a covert Russian network called "Operation Overload." This network spread videos disguised as Western media reports, containing false claims such as immigrant rapes and impending terror attacks, aiming to portray French leadership as weak and undermine public trust. The EU report, covering October 7-21, concluded that no evidence was found of external actors initiating the protests in the Russian case either, describing the activity as opportunistic. Moscow has previously rejected claims of disinformation in France, calling them "lies." Reuters emphasized that it could not independently verify the claims in the reports. Neither the Prime Minister's office nor the Israeli Foreign Ministry responded to the agency's inquiries.
French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the issue, stating that no overt foreign interference was identified behind the protests, but acknowledged "foreign influence on information."
