- May 25, 2026
- 9:41 pm
- World News
An international investigation has shown that Russian structures may have been behind a series of anti-Semitic and anti-Islamic provocations in Europe, and also considered Israel as a platform for legalizing their information operations. This is not just about fake news on social media, but about a whole system: from vandalism against synagogues and mosques to plans to create a “research institute” in Haifa, which was supposed to promote Russian narratives under the guise of expert analysis.
For the Israeli audience, this story is especially important. It intersects several sensitive topics at once: the security of Jewish communities, manipulations around anti-Semitism, Russian propaganda, influence on public opinion, and attempts to use Israel as a convenient showcase for political operations.
Leak from the Kremlin system: what became known
According to published materials “שומרים“ from May 24, 2026, journalists obtained documents and correspondence related to Russian official structures and contractors working in the field of information influence. A significant part of the materials relates to Sofia Zakharova — a high-ranking employee of the administration of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is under sanctions from several countries.
The documents also mention the so-called “Social Design Agency” — SDA. Investigators describe this structure as one of the key executors of Russian influence campaigns abroad.
Formally, SDA looks like an organization engaged in political campaigns, PR, media, and “social engineering.” But behind the corporate facade, as the materials suggest, operated a psychological impact machine working in the interests of the Kremlin.
Not only fakes, but also physical provocations
The main conclusion of the investigation is alarming: Russian operations, according to the documents, were not limited to bots, clone sites, and false publications. They included real actions on the streets of European cities.
One of the most high-profile stories is related to Paris. The documents mention an operation in which the facades of synagogues, a kosher restaurant, and a Holocaust memorial were splashed with bright green paint. The goal, according to internal materials, was to create the impression of a wave of “Islamic anti-Semitism,” to increase fear in the Jewish community, and at the same time to portray the French authorities as unable to protect citizens.
This is an especially cynical scheme. Anti-Semitism here was used not only as an ideological weapon but also as a tool of political pressure: the blow was dealt to Jews, Muslims, the French state, and the trust between communities.
Paris, mosques, and synagogues: how the Kremlin played on religious traumas
According to the investigation, attacks on Jewish sites were only part of a broader series of provocations. In another episode, SDA, as claimed in the documents, hired performers to plant pig heads at Paris mosques. They were inscribed with “MACRON.”
The calculation was obvious: to provoke the anger of the Muslim community, to enhance the sense of internal collapse in France, and to create a picture that could be used for political purposes.
The materials also mention plans for other actions: from making provocative inscriptions on the monument to General de Gaulle to absurd scenes with sex dolls on the Seine and operations against German “greens.” It looks like a mix of black PR, street theater, special operations, and digital propaganda.
Why this concerns Israel
Israel appears in this story not by chance. In one of the documents, as follows from the investigation, the possibility of creating a fictitious research institute in Haifa was considered. It was to be founded by Israeli citizens with academic degrees in political science, sociology, economics, and philosophy.
The task of such an institute was not scientific but propagandistic: to produce dozens of studies, articles, and videos that outwardly looked like independent expertise but actually promoted Russian narratives.
For the launch of the project, according to calculations from the correspondence, expenses were planned for an office in Haifa, legal registration, equipment, and salaries. For the first six months, the amount was about 8.8 million rubles, and then about 3 million rubles monthly — for the production and promotion of content.
It is important to emphasize: the materials do not confirm that this institute was actually created. But the very fact of discussing such a scheme shows how the Kremlin perceived Israel: not only as an object of observation but also as a possible channel for legalizing the meanings needed by Russia.
That is why for Israeli readers this topic goes beyond European chronicles. Nikk.Agency — Israel News | Nikk.Agency considers such stories as part of a broader picture: Israel’s information security today is connected not only with Iran, Hamas, or internal crises but also with Russian influence networks that know how to work through media, expert platforms, religious conflicts, and social fears.
Fake experts, AI, and search engines: a new form of war
The investigation shows that the Russian information strategy was built not on one channel, but on a whole ecosystem. It included fake news, pseudo-expert platforms, networks of sites, viral videos, artificial intelligence, and attempts to influence search engine results.
This is no longer old-type propaganda, where the viewer is directly told: “Russia is right.” The new approach is subtler. It does not always promote Moscow directly. Sometimes the task is different — to pit societies against each other, to undermine trust, to increase hatred, to make people believe that chaos is around, authorities are powerless, and democratic systems do not work.
From Ukraine to Armenia and Hungary
The documents also mention campaigns against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Among them is the spread of a fake about his allegedly purchased luxury apartment in Dubai for $3.2 million. Similar methods, according to the investigation, were used against Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
Special attention was paid to the elections in Armenia, as well as attempts to influence political processes in Hungary, Slovenia, Austria, and Slovakia. Through the Mitteleuropa project, as follows from the documents, it was planned to work with conservative and anti-Western sentiments in Central Europe.
For Israel, this is an important signal. Where the Russian influence machine sees social division, religious tension, disputes over war, migration, or identity, it tries not necessarily to create conflict from scratch, but to amplify an already existing crack.
Why anti-Semitism became a tool of foreign policy
The most dangerous part of this story is the use of the Jewish theme as expendable material. If the investigation data is correct, Russian structures were ready to stage attacks on Jewish sites to achieve a political effect in France.
This is not “protection of Jews” and not a fight against anti-Semitism. This is the exploitation of Jewish trauma. A synagogue in such logic turns not into a shrine and not into a community house, but into a decoration for an influence operation.
The same applies to Muslim communities. Planting pig heads at mosques is a calculation for humiliation, rage, and a retaliatory wave of public tension. The more mutual suspicion between Jews, Muslims, migrants, right-wing, left-wing, and the state, the more convenient it is for an external player to declare: “The West is collapsing on its own.”
The end of this story is still open. OCCRP, as indicated in the material, contacted Zakharova, SDA, and the administration of the Russian president for comments but received no response. However, the already published documents show the scale of the problem: Russian influence campaigns have long gone beyond ordinary disinformation.
For Israel, this means a simple thing: any “expert” platform, any sudden media narrative, and any too convenient outbreak of public hatred require checking the source. Especially when it comes to topics that can split society from within — Jews, Muslims, Russia’s war against Ukraine, migration, security, and trust in the state.