7amleh

Israeli police guard while Palestinians arrive to Friday prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, at the Lion's Gate in Jerusalem's Old City, October 13, 2023. (Jamal Awad/Flash90)

Israel’s ‘thought police’ law ramps up dangers for Palestinian social media users

Rights advocates warn the draconian law will enable unprecedented surveillance, raising Palestinian fears of arrest for their online activity.

By Sophia Goodfriend November 24, 2023

Images of a cat generated by AI with the prompts "Palestinian keffiyeh" and "Dome of the Rock" (left) or "Jerusalem street" (center and right). (Ameera Kawash)

What a cat in a keffiyeh reveals about AI’s anti-Palestinian bias

Popular AI systems are reproducing the internet’s existing prejudices against Palestinians, creating new forms of digital erasure and discrimination.

By Ameera Kawash April 25, 2023

Prominent Palestinian activist Muna el-Kurd and her brother Mohammed return to their home in Sheikh Jarrah, Jerusalem, after being detained and interrogated by Israeli police, June 6, 2021. (Oren Ziv/Activestills)

Who gets to speak out against their occupier on social media?

Social media giants are taking action to protect Ukrainians' free speech as they resist a military occupation. Why aren't they doing the same for Palestinians?

By Mona Shtaya March 22, 2022

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Cybertech Israel Conference and Exhibition, in Tel Aviv, attended by thousands of leading multi-national corporates, SMB's, start-ups, private and corporate investors, venture capital firms, experts and clients. January 31, 2016. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

Israeli colonialism goes digital

Israel's collaboration with tech companies has turned social media from a tool of free political speech to a means of censoring and repressing Palestinians.

By Anwar Mhajne May 25, 2021

A Palestinian youth holds a phone displaying WhatsApp in front of a computer with Facebook in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 26, 2014. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)

Anti-Palestinian incitement spikes online with Israeli election season

Violent, racist speech against Palestinians and Arabs was posted every 64 seconds on Israeli social media last year, new report finds.

By Ellie Stern March 12, 2020

Israeli soldiers inspect Palestinian cars at the Beit Furik checkpoint, near Nablus, West Bank, May 27, 2015. (Ahmad Al-Bazz/Activestills.org)

Lost in Occupation: How Google Maps is erasing Palestine

A new report details the ways Google Maps’ mapping process in the occupied territories serves the interests of the Israeli government, while contradicting the company’s stated commitment to human rights. When Tariq Asedih plans a trip from his village near Nablus to Ramallah, Google Maps “can’t find a way” for the 36-kilometer journey. Instead, he has to…

By Henriette Chacar October 4, 2018

Illustrative photo of a man using Facebook on a laptop computer. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)

‘Hate speech against Palestinians posted every 71 seconds’

A new report published by 7amleh documents anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian content on Hebrew-language social media and highlights the disparities in the way Israeli authorities treat violent speech online. Hate speech, derogatory statements, and calls for violence against Palestinians are posted on Israeli social media every 71 seconds, according to a report published this week by…

By Joshua Leifer March 7, 2018

Human rights defender and computer networking pioneer Anriette Esterhuysen speaks at 7amleh's Palestine Digital Activism Forum, Ramallah, West Bank, January 18, 2018. (Courtesy of 7amleh)

Social media giants feel the heat at Palestinian digital conference

At the Palestine Digital Activism Forum, representatives from both Google and Facebook faced a crowd that demanded to know why the two companies cooperate with Israel’s attempts at silencing Palestinians. Not long after the Arab Spring began, social media companies rushed to embrace the popular narrative that their platforms had the potential to change societies and reform…

By Joshua Leifer January 18, 2018