A 99-year-old Holocaust survivor is being subjected to "vile" antisemitic abuse on social media amid conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Golders Green educator Lily Ebert, who was imprisoned in notorious Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz, has more than two million followers from sharing her story on her TikTok account, which she runs with her 19-year-old great-grandson Dov Forman.

But since Hamas's incursion into south Israel on October 7 led to Israeli reprisals, Dov says they are now receiving "a few thousand" abusive comments a day.

Dov, with whom Lily wrote the best-seller Lily's Promise: How I Survived Auschwitz and Found the Strength to Live, said he was forced to switch off comments on their accounts and is now working with social media companies "to try and find the right balance".

He said: "Since October 7 we expected that after those barbaric terror attacks that there would be terror sympathisers who would come out and use their voice and their social media platforms to spread hate against myself and my great-grandmother.

"Straight away within days we started to receive thousands more antisemitic comments and messages than we usually do. It used to be a few hundred a day and now it's a few thousand."

Ham & High: Dov Forman with his beloved great-grandmother and Holocaust survivor Lily Ebert, both of whom have received 'thousands' of antisemitic comments on their social media posts since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7Dov Forman with his beloved great-grandmother and Holocaust survivor Lily Ebert, both of whom have received 'thousands' of antisemitic comments on their social media posts since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 (Image: Dov Forman)

Lily lost her mother and two youngest siblings when they arrived at Auschwitz in 1944. She is a founder member of the Holocaust Survivors Centre and was awarded the British Empire Medal for services to Holocaust education.

Dov said amongst the vile comments were claims that the Holocaust did not happen, people calling his grandmother a liar, and making direct threats.

"No-one should have to read these messages, " he added. "We knew straight away after October 7 this is something we had to shield her from as she's incredibly sensitive to this topic.

"She knows we get hate on social media but she doesn't know the extent. She would be distraught, absolutely distraught."

Dov said many Holocaust survivors moved to Israel after the Second World War with "many believing that if Israel existed at that time, the Holocaust wouldn't have happened".

He said Israel was close to his grandmother's heart. Lily's sister, who survived the Holocaust with her, lives there with family members.

He added: "The past few weeks have made many Jews feel nervous. The fact that still 230 of our brothers and sisters are being held hostage in Gaza is already depressing and worrying for our community.

"For me as a 19 year-old, who's in university where there's antisemitism and on the streets we see antisemitism rising over 1,000%, to wake up to these messages, it's just incredibly saddening.

"I've had a platform now for three years and become used to it, which is a sad reality, but I know how to deal with it and I have a support network around me but others don't have the same level of support and that is worrying."

After switching off some of his accounts, Dov says he has switched a few back on. 

He added: "I'm working with social media companies to work out what the best strategy is. It's difficult and we're trying to find the right balance."