World · 5 d ago
Zairon · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Report finds a paid campaign pushed anti-Muslim and anti-Qatar ads in 30 countries
Two academics say the three-year investigation found an operation that likely cost more than 11 million dollars and ran ads on YouTube, TikTok and Facebook. They call it "perhaps one of the biggest digital influence and disinformation operations ever documented".
Ad exposures counted
533 million exposures
The report counts at least 533 million exposures to ads promoting anti-Muslim, anti-migrant, racist and anti-Qatar views between October 2023 and October 2026.
The researchers say the evidence suggests, with "moderate to high confidence", that the campaign was run from within Israel. They cite video editing done in the Israeli time zone and machines with Hebrew drive and folder names.
Most exposures
- 1 United Kingdom: 154 million
- 2 United States: 100 million
France drew about a third of ad placements, and the ads drew the most exposures in the United Kingdom, at 154 million, then the United States, at 100 million. The report warns the campaign is still active ahead of elections in France and Italy in 2027.
