Facebook will allow an independent investigation into content moderation of Arabic and Hebrew posts after the social media giant has been accused of removing and suppressing pro-Palestine content, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.
“We have partnered with a non-profit organization expert in business and human rights, BSR, to conduct human rights due diligence of Facebook’s impacts during May-June’s intensified violence in Israel and Palestine,” Facebook said in a statement on Friday.
HRW Criticizes Facebook Censorship of Palestinians, Demands Investigation https://t.co/k8EeH5ggVf via @PalestineChron pic.twitter.com/2YUvX31zJt
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) October 12, 2021
“BSR will examine relevant internal Facebook sources and engage with affected stakeholders. We will implement the board’s recommendation in our due diligence, defining and prioritizing all salient human rights issues according to the guidance of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.”
The tech company added that it will publicly communicate the results of the investigation in 2022.
Activists and rights groups have accused the social media giant, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, of censoring Palestinians and supporters following the removal of pro-Palestinian posts.
No surprise here but great to see it so extensively documented by @hrw #Israel/Palestine: Facebook Censors Discussion of #Palestinian Rights Issues | Human Rights Watch https://t.co/ls8uR29AJb
— Sarah Leah Whitson (@sarahleah1) October 9, 2021
Last week, Human Rights Watch accused in a report Facebook of wrongfully removing and suppressing content by Palestinians and their supporters, including about human rights abuses carried out by Israel during the May 2021 aggression on Gaza.
Human Rights Watch also documented that Instagram, which is owned by Facebook, removed posts, including reposts of content from mainstream news organizations.
(WAFA, PC, Social Media)
