censor from voices in favor Palestine also stretches Internet. Aim increasingly muting content Facebook And instagram Those who show their support for the Palestinians, according to a new report by Human Rights Watch.
In the 50-page document, the technology giant social networks It preemptively suppressed messages protected by the right to free speech and did so more quickly after a surprise attack by the Palestinian group Hamas. Israel The killing of 1,200 people on October 7 and the military operation launched by the Jewish State against the Jews. Gaza StripIt led to the deaths of almost 20,000 more people.
NGOs for years HRW We condemn Meta’s “arbitrary and inexplicable” censorship. The study now documents a pattern that “results from poor policies, inconsistent and faulty practices, over-reliance on automated content moderation tools, and undue government influence in removing content.”
“Meta’s censorship of content supporting Palestine adds insult to injury at a time of untold atrocities and oppression “This is already suppressing Palestinian expression,” said Deborah Brown, HRW’s deputy director of technology and human rights. abuseFacebook and Instagram “further erase Palestinian suffering.”
More than a thousand cases
After reviewing 1,050 cases of censorship in more than 60 countries, HRW identified six patterns: removal of content, suspension or deletion of accounts, making it impossible to share content, tracking of accounts, restrictions on the use of certain functions, or “ban shadow” (shadow banningEnglish) is a technique based on minimizing the reach of an account’s posts without prior notice.
The report condemns that Meta “generally” enforces lists of organizations designated as: terrorists by the United States Government “restricting legitimate expression regarding hostilities between Israel and Palestinian armed groups.” It also ordered the removal of dozens of content of “newspaper value” and “documentation of injuries and deaths of Palestinians,” as well as policies regarding violent content, hate speech, or nudity that were “incorrect.” He also regrets its implementation.
Meta assured the NGO that it was implementing the basic principles. human rights as a guide to “immediate measures to respond to crises” that have been worsening in the Middle East for more than two months.