Hamas terrorists launched a surprise attack on Saturday, firing thousands of rockets at Israel, storming the country and massacring hundreds of innocent civilians in an unprecedented and reprehensible act of war. Since the war began, over 1,300 Israelis have been confirmed killed, families and towns have been torn apart, and over 130 children, women, and elderly have been reportedly kidnapped and are being held hostage in the Gaza Strip. 

 

Conversations have exploded on social media since the first reports of the terrorist attacks, with people sharing their thoughts on the atrocities that unfolded in Israel. The Foundation to Combat Antisemitism has identified more than 20 million online mentions related to Israel since Saturday through our Command Center, which is an over 2,000% increase from a normal week. Additionally, the conversations amassed 200 billion potential impressions, reaching more eyes in the last week than in the previous seven months combined. 

 

Most of the conversations on social media expressed support for Israel and condemned Hamas for their actions. These posts shared testimonies and descriptions of the atrocities committed by Hamas and called for unity and rejection of hate. Others used their platform to blame Israel for the Hamas terrorist attacks, claiming the attacks were acts of resistance against Israeli oppression. 

 

In this special edition of “From the Command Center,” all the sections will explore different aspects of the conversation around the war in Israel from the past week. 

A large portion of the conversation this week highlighted the horrific massacre by Hamas terrorists at the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im. Thousands of people from around the world gathered at the music festival in southern Israel, only three miles from the border with the Gaza Strip. Hamas terrorists stormed the festival early Saturday morning  and began to murder and kidnap attendees, taking prisoners over the border to Gaza. Israeli officials confirmed at least 260 people were killed. 

 

The conversation was mostly propelled by the stories of two Israelis, Noa Argamani and Shani Louak. Many people shared the video of Argamani being taken to the Gaza Strip on the back of a  motorcycle, pleading to be released. Videos of Louak being paraded, nearly naked and unconscious, across Gaza have also went viral on social media. 

Other users have shared stories of survivors on social media as a way to showcase to the world the atrocities that took place that morning.

White supremacists have been celebrating the Hamas terrorist attacks and calling for more violence against Jews worldwide. Multiple leaders of neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups have taken advantage of the brutality committed against Israelis to push further hate and mock the death and torture of innocent civilians.

Some extremists have used the attacks to push antisemitic conspiracy theories and other rhetoric online. Extremist threats of violence on Telegram increased 488% during the first 18 hours of the Hamas attacks, according to the ADL, compared to the day before. The ADL is also monitoring an increase in antisemitism among anti-Israel social media accounts and on college campuses. Antisemitic conspiracy theories have also been spreading on X, formerly known as Twitter, such as Israel being responsible for the 9/11 attacks, justifying the Hamas attacks. Others theorized that Israel posited the attacks as a false flag to give Israel the legitimacy to attack Palestinians and conquer more land.

 

Approximately 1,000 protesters gathered Monday outside the Sydney Opera House in Australia and chanted anti-Jewish phrases. Many of the protesters brought Palestinian flags, flares, and banners and chanted phrases like “gas the Jews,” “f**k the Jews,” and “f**k Israel.” The Australian government had lit the Opera House in blue and white, the colors of the Israeli flag, in solidarity with Israel after the Hamas terrorist attacks.

 

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong both condemned the protesters, emphasizing that antisemitism does not belong in Australia. Albanese went on to say that the demonstration never should have been allowed in the first place, prompting a police investigation.

Many social media users expressed their outrage over the antisemitic chants at the protest. Some pointed out how some pro-Palestine protestors use antisemitic rhetoric, which they find unacceptable.

 

Thursday, October 12th was named a “Day of Resistance” by the National “Students for Justice in Palestine” (SJP) movement. The goal of the day was to mobilize local SJP chapters to hold protests and demonstrations on their college campuses in support of Palestine. SJP made it clear that they endorse the actions of Hamas in the toolkit for the event, arguing “liberating colonized land is a real process that requires confrontation by any means necessary.” 

 

Protests were held on college campuses across the country Thursday.

 

 

 

 

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