A man who ‘liked’ a Facebook post accusing another man of anti-Semitism and racism has been convicted of defamation in a landmark ruling by a Swiss judge.

In the first case of its kind in Switzerland, the 45-year-old unnamed defendant from Zurich was found guilty after he ‘liked’ several posts on Facebook accusing Erwin Kessler, the president of an animal rights group, of racism and anti-Semitism.

The posts came about during discussions on Facebook over which animal welfare groups should be allowed to take part in a large vegan street festival in Switzerland, Veganmania Schweiz.

Posts describing Mr Kessler as racist, anti-Semitic or fascist, and his organisation as a neo-Nazi association, were liked by a number of people, including the defendant.

Mr Kessler then brought a case against the defendant, arguing that by ‘liking' the posts the man spread their content by making them visible to a larger number of people, and that he acted with intent to harm and without any justifiable cause.