Malaysia summons Meta over removed PM posts on martyr Haniyeh
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The Malaysian Prime Minister's Office (PMO) says it "views Meta's actions as discriminatory, unjust, and a blatant suppression of free expression."
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Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim speaks during a business luncheon with China's Premier Li Qiang in Malaysia on June 20, 2024. (AP)
The Malaysian government announced Monday that it had met with Meta executives to seek an apology and an explanation for why posts concerning the killing of Ismail Haniyeh were removed from Prime Minister Anwar's social media accounts.
Ibrahim's office confirmed that his Facebook and Instagram posts regarding Haniyeh's martyrdom were deleted last week by Meta.
Anwar's posts featured a video of the premier on the phone with a Hamas official, expressing his sympathies.
Anwar posted Meta's comment on Instagram, which stated that the postings were removed due to their affiliation with "dangerous individuals and organizations."
In a statement issued Monday, the Malaysian Prime Minister's Office (PMO) stated that it "views Meta's actions as discriminatory, unjust, and a blatant suppression of free expression."
"It is also seen as an affront to the legitimate struggle of the Palestinian people in their pursuit of justice and human rights."
The PMO demanded a public apology and a full explanation from Meta and on Sunday, Ibrahim demanded that Meta stop acting as "Israel's" tool.
See this: Lawsuit by ex-Meta engineer exposes how Meta censors Palestine content
"Let this serve as a clear and unequivocal message to Meta: Cease this display of cowardice and stop acting as instruments of the oppressive Zionist Israeli regime!" the prime minister said and published screengrabs of notifications he received from Instagram claiming his posts and comments went against the platform's community guidelines.
Anwar, who visited Haniyeh in Qatar in May, has defended Malaysia's relations with Hamas, making it clear in a visit to Germany that Malaysia's ties were with Hamas' political side.
#Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim demanded that US-giant Meta stop acting as "Israel's" tool after Instagram deleted his comments on the assassination of the head of H-am-as' Political Bureau, Is-ma-il Ha-niy-eh.
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) August 2, 2024
"Let this serve as a clear and unequivocal message to #Meta:… pic.twitter.com/wl6ii77rAv
Western brands in desperate straits amid Muslim nations boycotts
Boycotts of Western food and beverage brands in Muslim-majority nations, including Coca-Cola, KFC, Starbucks, Mondelez, and Pizza Hut, considerably impacted their profitability.
The boycotts, which are motivated by their support for "Israel", have been widespread and severe, aggravating the impact of a worldwide consumer downturn.
Some multinational corporations have been careful in attempting to minimize its significance, while others, such as Mondelez and L'Oréal, have documented particular detrimental consequences on their Middle East sales.
The boycotts are driven by social media and BDS groups and have resulted in significant sales decreases for several businesses like Coca-Cola in Pakistan and Starbucks in Malaysia.
Companies are attempting to handle the issue by lowering their profiles and avoiding more controversy.
The boycotts come at a time when Western companies are already competing with local alternatives and customer tastes shifting toward local items.
Amarpal Sandhu, chief executive of Americana Restaurants, which operates brands such as KFC, Pizza Hut, and Krispy Kreme across the Middle East and Kazakhstan, cited that the event was "unprecedented."
