Sada Social Center, a Ramallah-based social media watch group, announced today that it documented 132 violations against Palestinian digital content on social media platforms during the month of May.

Palestinian accounts received a number of content policy violation reports, resulting in restrictions on posting, post reach, and bans on posting news about Palestine, according to the watch group.

In a statement, Sada Social Center said that Meta has classified Palestinian freedom fighter Zakaria al-Zubaidi as a dangerous individual on the Facebook platform, and issued warnings to those who search for his name on the platform, in addition to labeling a number of Palestinian figures and groups as "dangerous individuals or organizations."

In further detail, the watch group stressed that Meta has also canceled the accounts of those accused of carrying out the operation in “Elad”, as well as videos, posts, and facts proving “Israel's” murder of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh and attacking her funeral on Facebook.

The IOF stormed the hospital going after the coffin of martyr #ShireenAbuAkleh, in a sickening violation of all international laws and human rights. pic.twitter.com/7NkobCzfxx

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 13, 2022

Kill and censor 

Meta was explicitly consistent with the "Facebook Law," which was approved by the Israeli Knesset in the first and second readings, requiring media sites and social networks to delete content claiming to combat "incitement" and "terrorism" while not jeopardizing "state security, public security, and individual security."

The Palestinian social media watch group stressed that this law aims to impose more restrictions on voices backing the Palestinian cause and rejecting the Israeli occupation via social media platforms, which exemplifies a serious threat to Palestinian digital rights, and works to hide political content critical of Israeli occupation authorities through the digital space, in addition to contributing to covering up their crimes and accountability failure.

“This indicates a lack of consideration for the specificity of the Palestinian cause and considering the mere transmission of the news an incitement to violence,” added Sada Social.

The Center tracked violations against more than 64 accounts of journalists, news networks, and activists in May, accounting for more than 48 percent of all digital content violations.

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Violations in numbers

The violations are listed in the following order: Facebook had 70 violations, Twitter had 5, Instagram had 8, YouTube had 13, WhatsApp had 42 violations belonging to news networks and journalists, Tik Tok had 5, and ClubHouse had one.

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The Center vowed to persist in monitoring violations against Palestinian content and work with the Facebook administration to address them. It also urged civil society organizations to defend Palestinian digital rights, which are routinely violated.

It stated that it is still working to restore many accounts that have been banned, emphasizing the importance of documenting these violations based on the importance of being on digital platforms and conveying the Palestinian narrative, as well as respect for the freedom of expression and publication as a universal right guaranteed by all international conventions.

It is worth mentioning that Sada Social, a Palestinian youth initiative founded in 2017, works with the administrations of social networking sites to ensure that Palestinian content is treated fairly, and documents the violations to which it is subjected.

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