Online campaign calls on Järva residents to demonstrate like in Paris

SVT has followed the spread of the post via several anonymous Tiktok accounts without names or profile pictures. The leads led to an account where the post was published a few days ago. Subsequently, the account posted several AI-manipulated videos in which famous people of African background are portrayed as urging people to demonstrate.

The videos use AI-generated voices that give the impression that the people themselves are behind the calls.

- When I talked to young people, I noticed that they didn't know about this. Then I understood that it was not someone from the area who was behind it, says Mustafa Ahmed.

Fryshuset: We are united

SVT has tried to reach the person behind the account that spread pictures of Järva, without success. The police and other authorities have received information about the online campaign.

- We in Järva are united, I don't think we would go for such propaganda, says Mustafa Ahmed.

Similar campaign in Spain

Images with similar layouts, fonts and AI-generated backgrounds have been shared on Tiktok in Spain, among others, with calls for protests in cities such as Barcelona and Madrid.

Spanish media company RTVE's fact checkers have recently tried to verify the images and their origin. Unlike the images spread in Järva, the Spanish versions also contained QR codes. They led to encrypted chats where participants discussed and called for protests similar to those in France. There were also discussions and calls to rob and loot shops belonging to various luxury brands.

Unclear who is the sender

Several of the Tiktok accounts that spread the Spanish images have later disappeared or deleted the posts. In its review, the media company has also not managed to find who or who are behind the accounts.

It has thus not been made clear whether it is the same person or actor behind the images that are being spread in Spain and those about Järva. The posts differ above all in that in Järva they do not lead to chats where possible protests are organized or discussed further.