Meta apologises for removing Malaysian PM’s post on Ismail Haniyeh

Meta issued an apology on Tuesday after removing posts from Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's Facebook and Instagram accounts regarding Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Iran on July 31.

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim shared a video on his social media accounts, showing his phone call with a Hamas official in which he offered condolences for the death of Ismail Haniyeh.

In a separate post, he also shared a photo from his last meeting with Haniyeh. Both posts were removed by Meta, prompting sharp criticism from Anwar, who accused the platforms of censoring expressions of solidarity with Palestinians.

Malaysia's communications minister and the Prime Minister's office sought an explanation from Meta representatives on Monday after the posts expressing condolences over Haniyeh's death were removed.

In a statement, the Prime Minister's Office condemned Meta's actions, calling them "discriminatory, unjust, and a blatant suppression of free expression."

A Meta spokesperson later informed Reuters via email that the removal of the posts was a mistake. 

"We apologise for an operational error where content from the Prime Minister’s Facebook and Instagram pages was removed. The content has since been restored with the correct newsworthy label," the spokesperson said.

Meta has strict policies against content praising the Palestinian resistance group Hamas, which it categorised as a "dangerous organisation." Such content is typically removed in accordance with these policies.

This incident is not the first of its kind. In May, Meta also restored Anwar Ibrahim's Facebook posts about his meeting with Ismail Haniyeh, attributing the earlier removal to an error.

KENYATAAN MEDIA

Meta sekali lagi bertindak biadab dan telah menghina perjuangan rakyat Palestin apabila menurunkan hantaran video serta ucapan takziah dan kritikan terhadap pembunuhan Almarhum Ismail Haniyeh.

Tidak masuk akal apabila hantaran menghormati seorang pejuang yang… pic.twitter.com/3rKblPYFb1

— Anwar Ibrahim (@anwaribrahim) August 1, 2024

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also criticised Meta for its crackdown on pro-Palestinian content.

During a speech in Ankara on Monday, Erdogan asserted, “We are facing a digital fascism that has no tolerance for even the photographs of Palestinian martyrs and bans them immediately.”

"They are resorting to every means to hide Israel’s cruelty and muzzle the Palestinian people’s voices. Social media companies have literally become militants," Erdoğan stated, referencing the removal of content related to Haniyeh.

Turkey banned Instagram on August 2, without providing an official reason. However, the ban followed sharp criticism from a senior government communications official after Meta removed content related to Hamas's political chief, Ismail Haniyeh.