According to the US and Israeli officials, as well as activist groups like the Anti-Defamation League, online antisemitism has reached unprecedented levels in the time since Israel launched their military campaign against Hamas.
In the wake of the October 7th massacre, Israel has ramped up military action in the region and showed little sign of slowing down until President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu’s recent agreement to deescalate and end the war in Gaza. However, despite this recent development, online antisemitism is unlikely to slow down on its own.
Records filed with the Department of Justice have revealed details about Israel’s ‘secret’ “Esther Project,” which involved paying social media influencers online to make posts against antisemitism and in favor of Israel. A firm called Bridge Partners LLC has reportedly been tasked with carrying out the management of a social media campaign which pays prominent influencers around $7,000 per post on social media, such as TikTok, on behalf of Israel and its actions.
In the disclosure, the firm said that its work is geared to “assist with promoting cultural interchange between the United States and Israel.” The engagement runs through a German global PR firm, Havas.
Bridges Partners LLC, owned by Israeli consultants Uri Steinberg and Yair Levi, was formed in June 2025 in Delaware, USA. Nearly a million USD has been funneled into the firm’s efforts to recruit and manage influencers to make pro-Israeli posts on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, X, and other platforms.
Of this cohort of influencers, PM Netanyahu said the following: “We have to fight back. How do we fight back? Our influencers. I think you should also talk to them if you have a chance, to that community, they are very important.”
Criticism of Israel and antisemitism online and across college and university campuses has reached levels likely never before seen in the United States–a country which has always staunchly supported Israel. If it’s happening in the US, Israel’s greatest supporter, it is likely even worse across the rest of the Western world, with governments in Europe such as Ireland increasingly likely to condemn Israel and recognize the state of Palestine. ‘
PM Netanyahu and the Israeli government believes that it is necessary for them to pay these influencers in order to fight back against these current trends.
