A covert Russian disinformation network exploited October’s riots in France to spread fabricated claims about immigration, terrorism and government failures, seeking to deepen political divisions and undermine confidence in President Emmanuel Macron’s leadership, according to an internal European Union assessment.
The campaign, identified as Operation Overload, used fabricated social media videos impersonating Western news organisations to target French audiences.
False claims included allegations that migrants had raped protesters and warnings that terrorist attacks were imminent, reports Reuters.
The EU assessment, covering 7 to 21 October, said the operation sought to portray French leaders as weak and increasingly authoritarian while exploiting domestic unrest to advance Moscow’s political interests.
However, the assessment found no evidence that Russia or other foreign actors had instigated or escalated the protests.
Instead, it described the activity as an opportunistic attempt to exploit unrest that had already emerged.
The riots erupted in several French cities last month as demonstrations over rising living costs and declining public services escalated into some of the country’s worst violence in decades.
A separate assessment by France’s foreign ministry identified hostile narratives circulated by social media accounts linked to Israel and the US MAGA movement.
These accounts sought to connect the unrest to immigration and radical Islamism.
The scale of their online reach was particularly striking.
Between 16 and 18 October, the 10 most-viewed posts about the unrest from pro-Russian accounts on X attracted 2.8 million views.
By comparison, the 10 most-viewed posts from MAGA-linked officials, media organisations and influencers generated more than 49 million views.
Posts from Israeli officials, government accounts, media organisations and influencers received more than 35 million views over the same period.
The findings highlight how several foreign-linked networks attempted to shape public perceptions of France’s domestic political crisis, although their reach varied considerably.
A wider campaign against western institutions
Operation Overload, which has been active since September 2023, has targeted Western public figures, institutions and media organisations to discredit them and weaken public support for Ukraine, according to the EU assessment.
The campaign has also promoted claims that European governments prioritise assistance to Ukraine over domestic economic and social challenges.
The UK-based Institute for Strategic Dialogue previously described the operation as a persistent, high-volume Russian information campaign that impersonates trusted sources to generate confusion and distrust.
Its tactics include producing fabricated news broadcasts, cloning experts’ voices using artificial intelligence, forging newspaper headlines and manipulating images.
Elina Treyger, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation, described such activities as part of a long-term contest to shape public narratives and perceptions of Western democracies.
Macron said on October 21 that there had been no visible foreign interference behind the protests, although he acknowledged attempts to manipulate information surrounding the unrest.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli Foreign Ministry also did not respond.
