Following the Charlie Hebdo attacks that took place in Paris on 7 January, conspiracy theories flooded French social media. While such theories are not new to France, this latest one became so prominent that Najat Vallaud Belkacem, French Minister of Education, expressed her alarm, stating that as many as "one in five youths adheres to the conspiracy theory".
Shortly after the attack, hashtags such as #TheorieDuComplot, #GuerreMondiale, and #Manipulation appeared on Twitter. Online comments quickly erupted. At 1:01pm, @Abou_djaafar tweeted: "The Indre attacks, September 11, Mohamed Merah, Charlie Hebdo...All conspiracies and schemes targeting Islam. Beware of the media."
