Antisemitic conspiracies blaming Jews for 9/11 resurface ahead of 25th anniversary, CyberWell warns
Some of the posts used a juice box emoji to subtly refer to the Jewish people in a way that would prevent the post from being flagged by moderation systems, according to CyberWell.
Antisemitic conspiracy theories blaming Jews and Israel for the 9/11 terrorist attacks are resurfacing on social media ahead of the 25th anniversary of the tragedy. CyberWell, an Israeli non-governmental organization focused on combating online antisemitism, has identified numerous posts across Meta, Reddit, TikTok, and X/Twitter claiming Jews had planned 9/11, knew the attacks would occur, or secretly controlled the horrific events.
Some posts use a juice box emoji to indirectly refer to the Jewish people, while others employ the antisemitic "Happy Merchant" caricature, and still others target individuals with slurs and accusations of involvement in the terror attack.
CyberWell CEO and Founder Tal-Or Cohen Montemayor stated that Jews represent approximately 10% of the 9/11 victims, with US State Department figures indicating between 200 and 400 Jewish lives lost at the World Trade Center, including five Israelis. She emphasized that online conspiracy theories spreading around the 25th anniversary of the event undermine the true lessons of the tragic incident and tarnish the memory of its victims and brave first responders.
CyberWell has observed a surge in scapegoating Jews for major global tragedies and criticized major platforms for inadequate Trust & Safety policies addressing such hatred.
The CEO highlighted the growing reliance of AI and large language models on social media data for training and knowledge, warning that the risk of antisemitic conspiracies and bias being absorbed and reproduced as factual information increases. She stressed that on the anniversary of 9/11, national security must remain a priority, as foreign state actors exploit and amplify antisemitic conspiracy theories to erode social cohesion and security in the West.
CyberWell called for expert partnerships to effectively tackle evolving antisemitism, coded content, and new forms of scapegoating in automated content moderation.
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