Meta removes social media accounts of Iran Supreme leader
Meta, parent company to Instagram and Facebook have removed social media accounts of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after criticism over his support for Hamas following its October 7 attack on Israel.
The company confirmed this but offered no specifics about its reasoning but however, it said it removed the accounts “for repeatedly violating our dangerous organisations and individuals policy”.
“We do not allow organisations or individuals that proclaim a violent mission or are engaged in violence to have a presence on our platforms,” the policy states including those designated as terrorists by the US government.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
Khamenei and accounts associated with the supreme leader had been praising the Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people and saw some 250 others taken hostage.
The pressure has been growing on online platforms to remove Khamenei in recent years, particularly after the mass protests that followed the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini after her arrest allegedly over how she wore the mandated headscarf in Iran.
Facebook has been banned in Iran since its 2009 disputed presidential election and the Green Movement protests that followed and also blocked Meta’s Instagram and WhatsApp after the protests over Ms Amini’s death.
The supreme leader still maintains an account on X, formerly Twitter.
Dolupo Balogun
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