Paris [France], November 11: A covert Russian network sought to exploit last month's riots in France by using social media to blame the unrest on uncontrolled immigration and portray the government as having lost control, according to an internal EU assessment seen by Reuters.
A separate internal assessment, compiled by France's foreign ministry and also seen by Reuters, found that social media accounts linked to Israel and to the US MAGA movement also pushed "hostile narratives" around the riots, linking them to radical Islamism and migration.
Taken together, the assessments offer an insight into how external actors have been trying to use France's domestic turmoil for their own political ends, according to analysis by European disinformation specialists.
The European Union analysis found that a covert Russian network known as "Operation Overload" spread videos impersonating Western media outlets to target French audiences, some falsely claiming migrants had raped protesters or terrorist attacks were imminent.
The Russian foreign ministry did not respond to a request for comment. In August, ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova rejected allegations by a French state watchdog agency of spreading disinformation about France's 2027 elections and said they would "not be the last concoction which the authorities will use to manipulate public opinion".
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation
