Meta blacklists Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei — RT World News
The tech giant says it bans people who have a “violent mission” or are “involved in violent acts.”
Meta has blocked several Facebook and Instagram accounts belonging to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, accusing him of violating policies related to… “Dangerous individuals and organizations.”
The social media company confirmed the ban in a statement to multiple news outlets on Thursday, with Middle East Eye reporting that accounts in both English and Persian had been disabled.
“We removed these accounts for repeatedly violating our Dangerous Organizations and Individuals policy.” A Meta spokesman told AFP and other news agencies.
While the spokesman did not say exactly how Khamenei's calculations conflicted with that policy, the move comes after repeated calls by pro-Israel groups for action against the Iranian leader's online presence in the wake of the war between Israel and Hamas. Tehran denied involvement in the attack launched by the Palestinian movement on Israel on October 7, but expressed its strong support for Hamas and the Palestinians more broadly amid the recent conflict.
Meeta says it is not allowed “Organizations or individuals who declare a violent mission or engage in violent acts have a presence on our platforms,” Adding that he would too “Remove the glorification, support and representation of various dangerous organizations and individuals.”
Khamenei's Instagram page in Persian has more than 5 million followers, while the English version has more than 200,000 followers. It appears that his previous Facebook page had a smaller presence, as the number of its followers reached about 16 thousand people.
Several verified accounts under Khamenei's name remain active on X (formerly Twitter), including accounts that post in several different languages. Following the terrorist attack on October 7, the Ayatollah made the announcement “The cancer of the usurping Zionist regime will be eradicated by the Palestinian people and resistance forces throughout the region.” With X later mentioning that the post would be “remain available” to “Public interest”.
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