New Delhi, Amid tensions during the Israel-Gaza war, it has been noted that a significant proportion of anti-Palestinian fake news has emanated from Indian right-wing accounts. The prevalence of such online disinformation has escalated following Narendra Modi’s ascent to the prime ministerial role in India in 2014.

According to a news release by Kashmir Media Service, a study orchestrated by an Arab news channel has shed light on the wave of disinformation pervading social media subsequent to the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel. Notably, a substantial amount of this disinformation has been attributed to right-leaning accounts stationed in India. Some narratives even advanced claims as sensational as Hamas’s abduction of a Jewish infant and the public execution of a young boy.

One of India’s prominent fact-checking agencies, BOOM, discerned the active participation of several authenticated Indian social media users in perpetuating this disinformation. These users, termed “disinfluencers” due to their propensity to disseminate false information, have majorly projected Palestine in an adverse light while being favorable to Israel. They have engaged in circulating narratives portraying Palestinians in a derogatory manner.

A particular account disseminated a video allegedly portraying young girls as captives of a Palestinian fighter, which upon close inspection, turned out to be an innocuous school trip to Jerusalem. Regardless of its inauthenticity, the video garnered massive traction. Further analysis deduced that the majority of accounts promoting the video were based in India. The video’s circulation even extended to a Telegram channel named Angry Saffron, presumed to be an open-source intelligence channel rooted in India.

Post these revelations, the European Union has issued a cautionary statement to Musk in the wake of the surge in disinformation subsequent to Hamas’s offensive on Israel.