CyberWell: Paris Attack Latest Episode of Social Media Platforms Reinforcing Rape Culture
Recently reports have emerged that a 12-year-old Jewish girl was gang raped in an antisemitic attack near Paris. Three teenagers, aged 12, 13, and 14 years old, have been arrested in connection with the attack, which police believe was motivated by antisemitism. The three teen boys allegedly beat the girl and “forcibly penetrated” her while “making death threats and antisemitic remarks,” the report said, citing an unnamed police source.
French prosecutors have opened an investigation into three teenage boys suspected of raping a 12-year-old girl in an attack motivated by antisemitism, French media reported Tuesday.
An investigation was opened on Saturday night after the girl and her parents filed a police complaint in Courbevoie, near Paris, alleging that she had been attacked in a park near her home by three teenagers, who hurled antisemitic insults at her before dragging her to a shed and gang-raping her, Le Monde reported.
The three attackers, aged 12, 13 and 14 years old, beat the girl and “forcibly penetrated” her while “making death threats and antisemitic remarks,” the report said, citing an unnamed police source. They are being investigated on suspicion of “aggravated rape, aggravated sexual assault, attempted extortion, invasion of privacy, death threats” for the attack. They were also being investigated for violence and hate speech due to the antisemitic nature of the attack.
Two of the three attackers were identified by the girl’s friend who was in the park at the time of the attack. Le Parisien reported that one of the suspected assailants was the victim’s former boyfriend, who confessed to the attack, saying he acted out of revenge after she hid her religious identity from him.
According to the French Minister of Interior, there were 1,242 antisemitic incidents from October 1 to December 31, 2023, a 1000% increase compared to prior months.
CyberWell, an innovative tech nonprofit focused on monitoring and combatting the spread of antisemitism on social media, released data in January exposing the unprecedented traction that the October 7 rape denial was gaining traction online. Cyberwell called for clear policy and enforcement against rape-denial content. Some internet platform employees informed Cyberwell then that the identified posts were not recent enough to be considered causing “real-world harm.”
Cyberwell has now stated that the recent Paris attack is the real-world harm they warned against. CyberWell Founder & Executive Director Tal-Or Cohen Montemayor shared:
“CyberWell is outraged by horrific reports that a 12-year-old Jewish girl was gang raped in an antisemitic attack near Paris. When women’s rights groups and social media platforms fail to condemn gender-based violence against Jews, no matter the context, they reinforce rape culture everywhere.
“When CyberWell released data in January exposing the unprecedented traction that October 7 rape denial was getting online and calling for clear policy and enforcement against this vile content, social media platforms failed to act. Some counterparts even told us the data that CyberWell released was not recent enough to be considered causing “real-world harm.” This is the real-world harm we warned against then and have shockingly witnessed.“
“Clear digital policies prohibiting content denying mass rape and sexual assault are needed now. By failing to de-platform such vile content, social media platforms are reinforcing rape culture everywhere, and serving as a motivator for those distributing “Rape is Resistance” stickers at anti-Israel riots.“
CyberWell has been sounding the alarm on platformed posts denying rape and sexual violence content related to Oct. 7 and its aftermath reaching millions of people since January.”
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