Country reports/ How disinformation on Israel-Hamas war was reflected in Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria, Ukraine and Georgia, during 1 year

Since the onset of the Israel-Gaza war in October 2023, social media has become a hotbed for misleading stories, manipulated visuals, and distorted narratives. Both state and non-state actors, either acting tacitly or in coordination, have exploited the conflict as a platform for their proxy wars on a global scale. Social media platforms, unprepared for the unprecedented deluge of disinformation following Hamas’ attack on Israel, allowed false narratives to proliferate unchecked. As a result, regular media and social media users—especially those with limited knowledge of the Middle East—were exposed to unprecedented levels of distorted content. These actors strategically leveraged the conflict to propagate divisive narratives, deepen societal divisions within democratic countries, and erode public trust in democratic institutions worldwide.

Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries are particularly vulnerable to such disinformation campaigns, owing to high levels of cognitive capture among their populations, political elites, and media. In Romania and neighboring countries, the oligarchization of traditional media, combined with the rise of online outlets and social media platforms, has created fertile ground for the production and dissemination of propaganda. These vulnerabilities have positioned the region as a prime target for malign influence operations led by Russia, China, and other state or non-state actors, exploiting fears, biases, and antisemitic sentiments.

The country reports for the Black Sea region: Romania, Moldova, Bulgaria, Ukraine and Georgia examine how disinformation related to the Israel-Hamas war intersects with ongoing campaigns targeting the CEE region. These campaigns draw from a disinformation toolkit honed during previous events, such as the war in Ukraine, the 2015 refugee crisis, the Brexit referendum, and the COVID-19 pandemic. By amplifying traditional fears, antisemitism, and divisive narratives, these actors aim to destabilize democratic societies, sway public opinion toward authoritarian models, and undermine societal resilience against disinformation.

This report is part of the project „Investigating the Impact of Disinformation Targeting the Israel-Hamas War in the Black Sea Region,” developed under the Disinfo4BlackSea initiative and funded by the European Media and Information Fund (EMIF). The project is spearheaded by a consortium of five entities: the independent media platform G4Media (Romania), two think tanks – CRPE (Romania) and CSD (Bulgaria), the fact-checking platform Veridica.ro. Together, these organizations aimed to investigate, analyze, and counteract the disinformation narratives linked to the Israel-Hamas war, with a special focus on Romania, Bulgaria, the Republic of Moldova, Georgia, and Ukraine.

Country report on Romania: CLICK HERE 

Country report on Moldova: CLICK HERE

Country report on Bulgaria: CLICK HERE

Country report on Ukraine: CLICK HERE

Country report on Georgia: CLICK HERE

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Material publicat în cadrul proiectului „Investigarea impactului dezinformării care vizează războiul Israel-Hamas în regiunea Mării Negre”, finanțat de Fondul European pentru Media și Informație (EMIF).

Unica responsabilitate pentru orice conținut susținut de Fondul European pentru Media și Informație (EMIF) revine autorului și nu reflectă în mod necesar pozițiile EMIF și ale partenerilor Fondului, Fundația Calouste Gulbenkian și Institutul Universitar European.

The sole responsibility for any content supported by the European Media and Information Fund lies with the author(s) and it may not necessarily reflect the positions of the EMIF and the Fund Partners, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and the European University Institute.