Thousands of obscene anti-Jewish posts shared online, CST report warns
Reams of "easily accessible, extreme and violent" videos, memes and posts discovered across at least four social media platforms.
![Screenshot of post featured in the CST report, entitled Hate Fuel: the hidden online world fuelling far right terror Screenshot of post featured in the CST report, entitled Hate Fuel: the hidden online world fuelling far right terror](https://static.jewishnews.co.uk/jewishnews/uploads/2020/06/Untitled-design-1-1-640x400.jpg)
A new report into online extremism has warned that thousands of pieces of violent antisemitic material are being disseminated on social media.
The Community Security Trust (CST) sounded the alarm on reams of “easily accessible, extreme and violent” videos, memes and posts it said were discovered across at least four social media platforms.
The Jewish charity detailed its findings in its latest report entitled Hate Fuel: the hidden online world fuelling far right terror, which it said was shared with police, government and counter-extremism officials.
The document, seen by Jewish News, was not made public due to the extreme nature of the material it contains.
Social media posts found by the Jewish charity included material blaming the Hungarian-American philanthropist George Soros and the wider Jewish community for recent anti-racism protests around the world.
The CST said it produced the report amid concerns over the “quantity and spread” of the material, which it warned poses an urgent threat to Jewish communities.
Speaking to Channel 4 on Thursday, Neil Basu, head of Counter Terrorism Policing, voiced concerns about online radicalisation amid the lockdown.
“My professional instinct is to tell me that throughout all of Covid, one of my biggest fear is people have been locked down looking at nothing but their screens for over three months now, and there has been an increase in propaganda grievance narratives being twisted online to try and radicalise people who are vulnerable and people have never been more vulnerable,” he told the broadcaster.
Meanwhile, the Government’s adviser on extremism announced this week the launch of a legal review to determine whether current legislation adequately deals with hateful extremism. Sir Mark Rowley, the former head of UK counter-terror policing, will put forward proposals later this year.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.