Meta permanently bans Al Mayadeen English Instagram account
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The crackdown on narratives countering mainstream and Western media continues, slamming the notion of the freedom of the press.
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Meta disables Al Mayadeen English Instagram account (Illustrated by Mohammed Moqalled; Al Mayadeen English)
Meta has disabled the account of Al Mayadeen English on Instagram for allegedly not following "our Community Guidelines."
"All your information will be permanently deleted," the decision stated.
"You cannot request another review of this decision," it asserted, meaning that no appeal can be made.
The move follows a similar one last October when the Al Mayadeen English account was shortly suspended on Instagram and later restored following an appeal.
At the time, neither a reason nor a prior notice was provided for the suspension.
It is worth noting that Al Mayadeen English's coverage follows journalistic standards and displays no graphic content that could have violated guidelines. It is also not the first time that Meta has taken such measures, as banning and blocking pro-Palestine and pro-Resistance accounts has become the norm for the multinational technology conglomerate.
"Israel" and its supporters have sought on numerous occasions to remove opposing voices from the airwaves or the internet. Former Israeli Minister Ayelet Shaked boasted about how she worked closely with Facebook to censor Palestinian voices, with the Silicon Valley company agreeing to remove around 95% of the information she requested.
Al Mayadeen English unpublished by FB, asserting pro-'Israel' bias
Last month, Meta unpublished Al Mayadeen English's page following several previous attempts, citing alleged violations of community guidelines.
Facebook attempted to justify its decision by citing several posts that reported on the martyrs of an Israeli massacre in the Southern Suburb of Beirut, in which a number of Lebanese Resistance commanders were assassinated after "Israel" targeted a residential building, including commanders Ibrahim Aqil and Ahmad Wehbe, and dozens of civilians.
Al Mayadeen English's reporting follows strict journalistic guidelines and standards. It is possible that the decision could have been made by mentioning the names of the martyred commanders.
Though Al Mayadeen English is a news website with a number of social media platforms, it has been repeatedly subjected to shadow bans and restrictions in an attempt to suppress its content, which is pro-Palestine and pro-Resistance, highlighting the duality of Meta's position on the freedom of the press.
Below are the posts cited by Meta as "violations" of its guidelines.
The Islamic Resistance in #Lebanon mourned the martyrdom of leader and military commander Hajj Ibrahim Aqil "Abdul Qader" in the Israeli aggression on Beirut's Southern Suburb, Lebanon, on Friday.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) September 21, 2024
Born in the village of Bednayel, Baalbeck, in 1962, martyr Aqil led a life of… pic.twitter.com/X5qjrea4ha
The Israeli aggression on #Beirut's Southern Suburb on Friday led to the martyrdom of several citizens, including Hezbollah Commander Ahmad Mahmoud Wehbe "Hajj Abu Hussein Samir."
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) September 21, 2024
Martyr Wehbe worked closely with Commander Aqil, who was also martyred in the attack.
He led a… pic.twitter.com/4zDHcLb5TH
Most notably, one of the removed posts dealt with the Palestinian Resistance's 2005 liberation of Gaza. Although no Resistance movements were mentioned in the post, Facebook still cited this as a breach of its community guidelines, as did Instagram.
Today marks the 19th anniversary of the liberation of #Gaza after the Israeli forces withdrew from the Strip as a result of the cumulative efforts of the #Palestinian Resistance throughout the years.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) September 12, 2024
As we remember the story of the liberation, we look forward to the victory of… pic.twitter.com/BNV9foDU96
Earlier in August, the Israeli occupation government approved a proposal by Minister of Communications Shlomo Karhi to renew the ban on the Al Mayadeen Media Network. The decision included the seizure of its equipment and the blocking of its websites.
Israeli media reported that the minister of communications pursued a new government decision after obtaining a "professional opinion" from security agencies and receiving approval from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
In response, our media network condemned the decision and considered it further evidence of the occupation's "inherent antagonism to journalism and its efforts to obscure reality."
Al Mayadeen considered "the occupation's insistence on banning a media outlet that is not under its control or the control of some of its allies and promoters, whether through intimidation or enticement, as a sign of weakness and fragility."
"It shows how angered and stressed the occupation is due to Al Mayadeen's commitment to its professional, humanitarian, and strategic media approach."
The network emphasized that labeling its correspondents in Palestinian 1948 occupied territories and the occupied West Bank as "terrorists" is, in itself, a form of terrorism. Al Mayadeen warned against "inflicting any harm on its journalists and asserted that it would not yield to any form of extortion or pressure, regardless of its impact or extent."
In what can only be seen as a blatant attack on freedom of speech and an effort to conceal the truth, the Israeli government approved the Telecom Minister's proposal to ban #AlMayadeen, seize its equipment, and block its websites as reported by Israeli media.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) August 11, 2024
It is noteworthy… pic.twitter.com/ZtFi1Is4KU
