Unrelated and AI-generated images used to suggest far-right protests are spreading across Europe

After a far-right rally successful London drew up to 150,000 protesters connected Sunday, a raft of societal media posts assertion to amusement akin demonstrations spreading crossed Europe.

The images are being misleadingly utilized arsenic grounds that Europeans are progressively embracing the aforesaid views arsenic those voiced successful the objection successful London — peculiarly anti-migrant sentiment.

But Euronews' verification and fact-checking team, EuroVerify, has identified respective videos unrelated to immoderate existent protestation question being utilized to substance those claims.

A drone video showing a agelong file of demonstrators carrying the Polish emblem has been circulating wide since Monday, with claims it shows arsenic galore arsenic a cardinal radical protesting against “migration” and the “leftist elite” successful Poland. 

But a elemental reverse representation hunt shows that the footage was taken successful November 2023 and shows Poland’s independency time celebrations successful Warsaw.

It is worthy noting that respective anti-migration rallies organised by the far-right Konfederacja (Confederation) were staged crossed an estimated 80 Polish towns and cities successful July, sparked by 2 fatal stabbings successful which the fishy was of a migrant background.

But specified demonstrations person not attracted the aforesaid benignant of turnout arsenic seen successful London, arsenic immoderate users suggest.

Similarly, a video showing a packed quadrate successful the Spanish metropolis of Pamplona during the yearly festivities of San Fermín, has besides re-emerged with vague claims it shows the "reawakening of Europe" and its "Christian values." The video successful information shows celebrations emblematic of the yearly taste event.

Another video clip from the metropolis of Hamburg successful bluish Germany, which had already been circulating wide successful August, has re-surfaced successful caller days with claims it shows protesters shouting anti-migrant chants.

But the footage successful information shows a congregation of Hamburg shot fans marching earlier a derby clash against FC St. Pauli connected 29 August this year.

It is existent that demonstrations which took spot successful the UK did bare ties to Europe, with speakers including France's far-right firebrand Éric Zemmour, and Romania's caller statesmanlike run-off campaigner George Simion.

The astir high-profile proponents of the London rally, including Elon Musk, are besides actively projecting their views onto European audiences.

Musk — who has precocious endorsed far-right candidates up of elections successful Germany and Romania — besides shared an AI-generated representation of the London protestation which confusingly showed crowds flying the UK emblem with a gathering resembling Paris' Arc de Triomphe successful the background.

Efforts to export UK flag-hoisting movement

London's alleged Unite the Kingdom rally was organised by Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, amended known arsenic Tommy Robinson, a far-right activistic and agitator who antecedently founded the Islamophobic organisation the English Defence League (EDL).

The event, which according to immoderate eye-witnesses and anti-hate transgression bodies gave a level for hatred code and conspiracies, attracted a bigger turnout than expected by authorities.

It came aft a societal media-fuelled question saw a fig of Union Jack and St George's flags look successful English towns and villages successful caller months.

The Labour-led UK authorities has encouraged the flying of the nationalist flags arsenic a amusement of patriotism. For others, the question is inflaming tensions and polarisation astatine a clip of heightened tensions implicit the contented of migration.

It has triggered online efforts to rally enactment for emblem hoisting successful different European countries, astir notably successful France.

EuroVerify recovered present has been a spike successful online calls for the French emblem to beryllium raised crossed French cities and towns connected societal platforms successful the past week, nether the hashtags #OperationTricolore, #PorteTonDrapeau and #HisseTonDrapeau.

A French writer for BFMTV has detected that the question erupted online connected September 1, erstwhile arsenic galore arsenic 10,000 posts utilizing the hashtag #OperationTricolore were published, compared to nary astatine each the erstwhile day.

It has since gained the enactment of far-right influencers, notably those considered adjacent to far-right person Éric Zemmour.