Meanwhile in the US, more censorship
Meta to remove more posts targeting ‘Zionists’
The Facebook and Instagram parent has said it would start taking down more posts that target “Zionists”, where the term is used to refer to Jewish people and Israelis rather than representing supporters of the political movement.
Meta’s policy update comes as tensions escalate in the Middle East amid the Israeli war in Gaza.
The company has been criticised for years about how it handles content involving the Middle East. Such criticism shot up further after the start of the war, with rights groups accusing it of suppressing content supportive of Palestinians on Facebook and Instagram.
In 2021, a Meta-commissioned report found that the company’s flawed content moderation policies had stopped Palestinians from sharing “information and insights about their experiences as they occurred”, having a negative “human rights impact”.
US accuses Iran of seeking to stir up Gaza protests
The US intelligence chief has accused Iran of egging on protests inside the United States against Israel’s assault on Gaza, including by paying demonstrators.
Avril Haines, the director of national intelligence, stressed she was not alleging that Americans taking to the streets against Israel or US policy were insincere or doing Iran’s bidding but said Tehran was stepping up efforts.
“In recent weeks, Iranian government actors have sought to opportunistically take advantage of ongoing protests regarding the war in Gaza, using a playbook we’ve seen other actors use over the years,” Haines said in a statement.
“We have observed actors tied to Iran’s government posing as activists online, seeking to encourage protests and even providing financial support to protesters,” she said.
“The freedom to express diverse views, when done peacefully, is essential to our democracy, but it is also important to warn of foreign actors who seek to exploit our debate for their own purposes,” she added.
Foreign actors like Israeli Hasbara? Aipac is the biggest foreign actor seeking to exploit your 'debate' for their own purpose.
You tube is flooded with Israeli 'influencers', pro Israel supporters are disrupting peaceful demonstrations or going after protesters. Just one of many examples https://www.reuters.com/world/name-shame-pro-israel-website-ramps-up-attacks-pro-palestinian-student-2024-05-11/
