Antisemitism watchdogs reported that online conspiracy theories accusing Israel of orchestrating a false flag operation began circulating on social media just over an hour after an attempted terrorist attack aboard an Israel-bound flydubai flight on Wednesday.
The incident began at 1:21 AM ET when a Boeing 737 MAX 8 flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv with 174 passengers transmitted emergency distress signals after one of the pilots allegedly stabbed the second pilot and attempted to crash the aircraft. Passengers and crew intervened to subdue the attacker before the plane diverted safely to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.
According to a monitoring report from the Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) Antisemitism Research Center (ARC), the first post declaring the event an Israeli false flag appeared on X just 67 minutes after the emergency signal.
“What’s striking here isn’t just the volume; it’s the speed,” said ARC Research Associate Oliver Marks.
“67 minutes is all it took for the near-downing of a commercial airliner by a terrorist pilot to become fodder for antisemitic conspiracy theorists across the globe. It’s clear this isn’t a narrative that forms in response to an incident. Rather, it’s part of a script that already exists, sitting ready for use whenever opportunities arise.”
screenshot from combat antisemitism report covering conspiracy theories posted within an hour of flydubai incident. 2026 (credit: screenshot)Conspiracies spread online that Netanyahu staged the flydubai incident
The ARC study tracked 4,136 posts containing the phrase “false flag” over a 12-hour monitoring period, identifying 2,963 hostile posts that blamed Israel, the Mossad, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Zionists, or Jews for the incident. Conspiracy content escalated rapidly from the initial post, reaching 100 posts by 3:07 AM ET, 500 posts by 5:42 AM ET, 1,000 posts by 7:35 AM ET, and 2,000 posts by 9:36 AM ET, with volume continuing to rise until collection ended at 10:43 AM ET.
About 72% of all tracked false flag posts promoted these conspiracy theories, rising the 82% in the final hour. Peak hourly volume occurred between 9:00 AM and 10:00 AM ET, recording 623 posts.
Examples documented in the report included social media posts alleging that Netanyahu staged the event to cancel elections or distract from criminal charges, alongside posts explicitly drawing comparisons to September 11 and claiming the incident was an Israeli false flag operation akin to October 7.
The ARC study’s concluding assessment noted, “The pattern mirrors the influence operations that hostile states, Russia foremost among them, use to destabilize Western societies: sowing social division, exploiting breaking news events, and portraying Israel and Jews as the ‘hidden hand’ behind them.”
CyberWell also responded to the proliferation of false flag narratives spreading online following the attack.
CyberWell Founder and CEO Tal-Or Cohen Montemayor said, “Today’s horrific attack aboard a flydubai flight from the UAE to Israel is an ugly reminder of how quickly online antisemitism can distort the facts of an unfolding event. After a co-pilot allegedly stabbed the second pilot and attempted to take control of the aircraft, Israeli passengers helped restrain him and keep the injured pilot alive before the plane diverted safely to Saudi Arabia.”
Cohen Montemayor added, “As news of the incident spread, ‘false flag’ claims quickly emerged on social media, alleging that Israelis had hijacked the plane or staged the attack. These claims reflect a broader pattern of conspiratorial self-victimization, an antisemitic conspiracy that falsely accuses Jews or Israelis of orchestrating attacks against themselves to manipulate public opinion. It is a contemporary expression of Jew-hatred and a form of misinformation aimed at spreading hatred, distrust, and disgust toward Jews.”
Cohen Montemayor stated, “Platforms and LLMs cannot rely on poisoned knowledge sources or automated systems that fail to recognize these rapidly evolving forms of antisemitic conspiracy. They need real-time expertise from organizations like CyberWell that can identify emerging narratives, understand the context behind them, and help platforms respond effectively.”
“‘False flag’ conspiracy theories are particularly corrosive because they do more than deny an attack,” Cohen Montemayor concluded.
“They recast victims as perpetrators and can perpetuate violence by fueling hatred and encouraging further violence against Jews.”
Read more about Combat Antisemitism Movement’s report here.