Meta accused of mishandling Israel-Hamas war, oversight board says videos should not have been removed

In a recent development, Meta’s independent oversight board issued criticism towards the social media giant for the removal of posts depicting human suffering in the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Functioning as a kind of social media supreme court, the board, established by Meta in 2020, overturned two decisions regarding removal of posts and called on the company to respond more swiftly to evolving circumstances in the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel.

One of the cases involved Instagram’s removal of a video illustrating the aftermath of a strike on or near Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City during Israel’s ground offensive. The video portrayed Palestinians, including children, who were reportedly injured or killed. The second case centred on Facebook’s decision to remove a video featuring an Israeli woman pleading with her captors not to harm her during a hostage situation amid Hamas raids on Israel.

Oversight board co-chair Michael McConnell acknowledged the difficulty of the decisions, emphasizing the board’s focus on safeguarding freedom of expression while preventing the incitement of violence or hatred.

The board urged Meta to preserve removed posts that might contain evidence of human rights violations. Meta informed the board that it temporarily lowered thresholds for the automatic removal of posts with potentially harmful content following the Hamas-led attack on Israel. The use of automated content moderation tools at Facebook and Instagram, however, was identified as a factor that increased the likelihood of removing posts depicting the harsh reality of the conflict.

McConnell emphasized the importance of such testimonies, not only for the individuals sharing them but also for global users seeking timely and diverse information about significant events, some of which could serve as crucial evidence of potential violations of international human rights and humanitarian law.

In October, the European Union requested information from Meta regarding the dissemination of violent and terrorist content on its platforms.

While content decisions by the oversight board are binding, its recommendations are not, according to Meta. The Israel-Hamas conflict has resulted in numerous casualties, stirring intense emotions worldwide. Social networks continue to grapple with the influx of violent imagery and misinformation, challenging online platforms in their content moderation efforts.

(With inputs from agencies)