  Social media has become a crucial conduit for the swift dissemination of
information during global crises. However, this also paves the way for the
manipulation of narratives by malicious actors. This research delves into the
interaction dynamics between coordinated (malicious) entities and organic
(regular) users on Twitter amidst the Gaza conflict. Through the analysis of
approximately 3.5 million tweets from over 1.3 million users, our study
uncovers that coordinated users significantly impact the information landscape,
successfully disseminating their content across the network: a substantial
fraction of their messages is adopted and shared by organic users. Furthermore,
the study documents a progressive increase in organic users' engagement with
coordinated content, which is paralleled by a discernible shift towards more
emotionally polarized expressions in their subsequent communications. These
results highlight the critical need for vigilance and a nuanced understanding
of information manipulation on social media platforms.
