Malaysia PM Anwar Ibrahim on Thursday accused Meta Platforms of cowardice after his Facebook post on the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was removed, in his government’s latest run-in with the firm over blocked content.
Muslim-majority Malaysia is a supporter of the Palestinian
cause and Anwar had posted a video recording of his phone call
with a Hamas official to offer condolences over Haniyeh’s death,
which was later removed.
Haniyeh’s assassination in Iran on Wednesday has added fuel
to concern the conflict in Gaza was turning into a wider Middle
East war.
Anwar, who met Haniyeh in Qatar in May, has said he has good
relations with the Hamas political leadership but no links on a
military level.
“Let this serve as a clear and unequivocal message to Meta:
Cease this display of cowardice,” Anwar posted on his Facebook
page.
Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment on
Thursday.
Malaysia’s Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said an
explanation had been sought from Meta and it was unclear whether the posts were automatically removed, or taken down following a complaint.
Meta has designated Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist movement
that governs Gaza, as a “dangerous organisation” and bans
content praising the group. It also uses a mix of automated
detection and human review to remove or label graphic visuals.
Malaysia has previously complained to Meta over its takedown
of content, including local media coverage of Anwar’s last
meeting with Haniyeh, which was later restored.
Meta at the time said it was not deliberately suppressing
voices on its Facebook platform and was not restricting content
supporting the Palestinians.
Malaysia has long advocated a two-state solution for the
conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. In the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel last October, and the enormous casualties suffered by both sides in a war now nine months old, it’s not clear how much support for a two-state solution really exists.
With Reuters inputs
