Measures against anti-Semitism – almost 2,000 pieces of content marked for removal

Europol has successfully completed a Referral Action Day to detect and combat anti-Semitic content on the Internet.

This coordinated operation, led by authorities in Switzerland and the United Kingdom, took place on 27 June 2024. The operation involved law enforcement authorities from 18 countries, working with Europol’s European Union Internet Referral Unit (EU IRU) and major online service providers.

Referral Action Day targeted a wide range of anti-Semitic content, including hate speech, Holocaust denial and the glorification of violence against the Jewish community. The main goal was to remove illegal content and ensure that online platforms comply with European rules on hate speech and discrimination.

In total, almost 2,000 pieces of anti-Semitic content were identified and forwarded by Europol and participating countries to online service providers for removal.

The focus of Referral Action Day is on the rise in widespread anti-Semitism that is justified and promoted in the jihadist milieu and in right-wing and left-wing extremist groups on the Internet. This anti-Semitic content is also spread by people without affiliation to this milieu on various online platforms. The trigger for this rise in hate speech was the attack by the terrorist organization Hamas on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent military response by Israel.

This action day for Internet reporting centres and specialised police units from the following countries took part:

Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine and the United Kingdom.