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European Jewish student group sues Twitter over its handling of antisemitism and Holocaust denial
BERLIN (JTA) – Europe’s main Jewish student organization is fed up with the antisemitism, Holocaust denial and other hate speech burgeoning on Twitter — so they are taking the social media company to court.
The Brussels-based European Union of Jewish Students and the Berlin-based HateAid non-profit group on Wednesday announced they have sued Twitter in Berlin District Court for failing to uphold its own pledge to remove hate speech from the platform.
The action — which included the placement of a hashtag prop in front of the German parliament building, in an inversion of a symbol that Twitter itself popularized — was sponsored by the Berlin-based Alfred Landecker Foundation, as part of its Digital Justice Movement, started by HateAid.
The move comes as Germany prepares to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day with ceremonies and events across the country.
But that is not enough, said Avital Grinberg, president of the EUJS, which represents some 160,000 European Jewish students. “Remembrance of the Shoah must not be merely expressed through emotional speeches, but also through clear positions, resolute action and protective laws,” she said.
The announcement of the lawsuit comes a day after Twitter reinstated the American Holocaust denier and white supremacist Nick Fuentes, the latest in a string of people who had posted antisemitic material to the platform to be allowed back since the billionaire Elon Musk bought it last year. Fuentes immediately tweeted antisemitic comments and was suspended again.
But the site does not remove antisemitism, according to the student group’s lawsuit. Armed with six specific cases in which they claim Twitter did not take complaints seriously, the Berlin law firm of Preu Bohlig sued Twitter on Tuesday, demanding the removal of antisemitic content that is illegal under German law, said Torben Duesing, a partner in the firm, at a press conference Wednesday in the German capital.
Their aim is twofold: to move a social media mountain, and to encourage targets of hate speech to speak up. The six cases — all of which were posted in the last three months — were not described, to avoid giving them further publicity, organizers said.
But the groups did say that in one case relating to Holocaust denial, Twitter had explicitly refused to remove the content.
Europe has been a challenging frontier for technology companies, which have had to take steps to ensure digital privacy and change their handling of misinformation because of European laws and regulations. Now, the students’ lawsuit aims to leverage Germany’s particularly vigorous laws barring Holocaust denial and the glorification of Nazi ideology to force the platform to remove it. There are similar laws in other EU countries.
The lawsuit focuses on clarifying whether Twitter has a contractual obligation to its users, under its legal terms of service, to remove antisemitic tweets that contain sedition, including trivialization and denial of the Holocaust.
Just because Twitter doesn’t respond adequately to complaints doesn’t mean one should give up trying, said German Jewish writer and activist Marina Weisband at the press conference. All Twitter users around the world agree to the terms of service, “which is designed to protect users” from hate speech, she said. But if Twitter doesn’t enforce these terms, what are they worth?
Twitter claims to share the view that “Jewish rights are human rights,” said Grinberg. “But the reality appears to be the opposite.”
There has as yet been no response to the suit from Twitter, which has not had a public relations team since shortly after Musk’s acquisition, when he slashed the staff. The company is already subject to an advertiser boycott that has sharply curbed its revenue, the result of a push by the Anti-Defamation League and others in response to Musk’s lack of action around hate speech on the platform.
The ADL released an analysis last year finding that Twitter removed only 5% of 225 tweets that it reported as “strongly antisemitic” — comments accusing Jewish people of pedophilia, invoking Holocaust denial, and sharing conspiracy theories — over nine weeks last summer. It also found that antisemitism spiked on the platform following Musk’s acquisition.
In 2021, a report by the British-based Center for Countering Digital Hate found that 84% of reported posts on social media platforms containing antisemitic hate were not reviewed by the platforms. According to the survey, Twitter intervened in only 11% of the cases.
Twitter does promise to police its platform and has lately has suspended the accounts of users whose antisemitic comments made headlines. That was true last year for Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, and again on Wednesday for Fuentes after his reinstatement.
But more is needed, said the students and attorneys behind the European lawsuit.
“We know that one lawsuit is not enough to make Twitter a perfect place,” Josephine Ballon, HateAid’s lead attorney. “We know that it takes more than that, but we are convinced that it is precisely these kinds of lawsuits that will put new tools” in the hands of minority groups and individuals.
“Social media is the most important debate platform of our generation,” said Grinberg. The lawsuit, she said, is “the response of resilient Jews to the failure of Twitter, social media, politicians and the law.”
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The post European Jewish student group sues Twitter over its handling of antisemitism and Holocaust denial appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Trump Curious Why Iran Has Not ‘Capitulated’ Amid US Military Buildup, Says Witkoff
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff delivers a press conference upon the signing of the declaration on deploying post-ceasefire force in Ukraine, during the so-called ‘Coalition of the Willing’ summit, at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Jan. 6, 2026. Photo: Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS
US President Donald Trump is curious as to why Iran has not yet “capitulated” and agreed to curb its nuclear program, as Washington builds up its military capability in the Middle East, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said.
“I don’t want to use the word ‘frustrated,’ because he understands he has plenty of alternatives, but he’s curious as to why they haven’t… I don’t want to use the word ‘capitulated,’ but why they haven’t capitulated,” Witkoff said during an interview on Saturday with Fox News’ “My View with Lara Trump,” hosted by the president’s daughter-in-law.
“Why, under this pressure, with the amount of seapower and naval power over there, why haven’t they come to us and said, ‘We profess we don’t want a weapon, so here’s what we’re prepared to do’? And yet it’s sort of hard to get them to that place.”
Trump has ordered a huge buildup of forces in the Middle East and preparations for a potential multi-week air attack on Iran. Iran has threatened to strike US bases if it is attacked.
IRAN DENIES SEEKING NUCLEAR WEAPONS
The United States wants Iran to give up enriched uranium which Washington says can potentially be used to make a bomb, as well as stop supporting terrorists in the Middle East and accept limits to its missile program.
Tehran says its nuclear program is peaceful but it is willing to accept some curbs on it in return for the lifting of financial sanctions. It rejects tying this to other issues such as missiles and support for armed groups.
“They’ve been enriching well beyond the number that you need for civil nuclear. It’s up to 60 percent [fissile purity],” Witkoff said. “They’re probably a week away from having industrial, industrial-grade bomb-making material, and that’s really dangerous.”
A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Sunday that Iran and the United States still have differing views over sanctions relief in talks.
Witkoff also said he has met at Trump’s direction with Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi, son of the shah ousted in Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution. He did not provide further details of the meeting.
Pahlavi, who lives in exile, served as a rallying figure for some of Iran’s opposition during anti-government demonstrations last month in which thousands of people are believed to have been killed, the worst domestic unrest since the revolution era.
Earlier in February, Pahlavi said US military intervention in Iran could save lives, and urged Washington not to spend too long negotiating with Tehran’s clerical rulers on a nuclear deal.
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US-Iran Talks Expected Friday if Iran Sends Nuclear Proposal Soon, Axios Reports
Atomic symbol and USA and Iranian flags are seen in this illustration taken, September 8, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
United States negotiators are ready to hold another round of talks with Iran on Friday in Geneva if they receive a detailed Iranian proposal for a nuclear deal in the next 48 hours, Axios reported on Sunday, citing a senior US official.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report.
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Khamenei Designates Larijani to Lead Iran’s Affairs During Protests, Military Threats
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani speaks after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon, Aug. 13, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Aziz Taher
i24 News – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has reportedly assigned significant authority to former Revolutionary Guards commander and longtime political figure Ali Larijani in response to rising US and Israeli military threats, as well as nationwide unrest, according to a report by The New York Times.
The newspaper cites Iranian officials, members of the Revolutionary Guards, and former diplomats, noting that Khamenei has issued detailed instructions on succession and emergency decision-making should he be targeted in a potential strike.
Larijani, currently a top national security official, has been tasked with managing state affairs, overseeing the crackdown on protests, coordinating sensitive nuclear discussions with Washington, and liaising with allied nations including Russia, Qatar, and Oman.
“Larijani has been entrusted with responsibilities that cover both domestic security and international relations, effectively acting as Khamenei’s right-hand man during this period of heightened tension,” the report states.
Officials say Khamenei has prepared multiple layers of succession for key political and military positions and delegated powers to a close circle of confidants. While Larijani is not considered a likely successor to the Supreme Leader due to insufficient religious credentials, he is described as one of the regime’s most trusted crisis managers.
Iran has reportedly placed its armed forces on high alert, deployed missile systems near Iraq and in the Persian Gulf, and intensified military exercises. Special forces, intelligence units, and Basij militia battalions are prepared to deploy to major cities to suppress unrest and monitor suspected foreign operatives if conflict escalates.
The move comes amid continued diplomatic engagement over Tehran’s nuclear program. Despite ongoing negotiations, officials say Iran is operating under the assumption that a U.S. military strike is “inevitable and imminent.”
According to the report, Larijani tops the list of emergency successors, followed by Parliament Speaker General Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, with former president Hassan Rouhani also named as a potential fallback in extraordinary circumstances.