There has been an unprecedented 12-fold increase in hateful social media content being referred to specialist police officers since Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October, according to the UK’s Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit.

Once focused on propaganda shared by the Islamic State group (IS) and the fall-out online following UK-based attacks, much of the unit’s focus has shifted to assessing whether hateful and extreme social media posts breach anti-terror legislation.

The team says it has received more than 2,700 referrals from the public - shared via an online form - since Hamas attacked Israel, and Israel launched waves of air strikes on the Gaza Strip in return.

It is a spike in hate that leaves young Britons increasingly exposed to radicalisation by algorithm.

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