The Arab Center for Advancement of Social Media, 7Amleh, released on Tuesday the findings of the “Index of Racism and Incitement on Israeli Social Media in 2021”, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.
The new report indicates an increase in hate speech by 8% since 2020 as it monitored 620,000 conversations including violent and inciting speech against Palestinians. It recorded an increase of 46,000 posts including violent speech, compared to 574,000 in 2020.
The results of the Racism and Incitement Index 2021 revealed an increase in hate speech towards Arabs by 8% since 2020, as it monitored 620,000 conversations including violent and inciting speech against Arabs.📢
Check out the full report: https://t.co/JNaD9SttA0 pic.twitter.com/XF4dSa1vQP
— 7amleh Øملة (@7amleh) January 19, 2022
The 2021 index shows an increase in incitement by three times since 2020. Violence speech against Palestinians, Arabs, and their representatives further intensified, constituting 11% of overall speech online – an unprecedented rate since 2017.
The peak of violent speech was recorded in March 2021, during Israeli elections, and April-May, during the May Uprising and Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip.
— 7amleh Øملة (@7amleh) January 19, 2022
Twitter was reported as the most utilized tool to share hate speech and incitement, with 58% of violent speech hosted on the platform, while Facebook hosted around 19%.
“Social media platforms in the May Uprising reflected what was happening on the ground, as hate speech notably increased during the uprising,” said Nadim Nashif, Director of 7amleh, commenting about the index.
How Israel’s ‘Facebook Law’ plans to control all Palestinian content online#Palestine #JordanTimeshttps://t.co/O7xPQlqwst
— The Jordan Times (@jordantimes) January 19, 2022
“Social media was also used as a tool to organize violent and inciting attacks against Palestinians and Arabs, with its impact exceeding the digital realm into the real world,” Nashif continued.
The Racism and Incitement Index on Israeli Social Media Networks is an annual report released by 7amleh that monitors the overlap in the use of racist and violent expressions against Arabs and Palestinians throughout the year.
(WAFA, PC, Social Media)
