Internal documents reviewed by The Intercept indicate that Israel's government requested Meta to censor social media content regarding its conflict with Iran. The records show that Israel sought the removal of Facebook and Instagram posts that expressed support for Iran, criticized Israel, or depicted Iranian missile impacts.
The requests included content mourning the death of Ayatollah Khamenei, supportive posts of Iran's retaliatory actions, and military analyses from Iranian accounts. Meta has complied with some of these requests, although it is unclear on what grounds, as the company states it only removes content that violates its policies or legal requirements.
The Israeli Ministry of Justice, which submits these requests, did not respond to inquiries about the number of takedown requests granted since the war began. Historically, Israel has leveraged its relationship with Meta to influence content moderation practices, with the Office of the State Attorney often filing complaints regarding content deemed illegal or promoting terrorism.
Meta designates Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a 'Dangerous Organization,' which restricts positive speech about its actions, a policy not equally applied to U.S. or Israeli military actions. The company has faced criticism for perceived biases in its content moderation, particularly regarding Arabic content compared to Hebrew.
Legal scholars argue that Meta's claims of legal obligations to remove certain content lack precedent in existing sanctions law. The relationship between Meta and the Israeli government has raised concerns about censorship, especially during wartime, with experts noting the potential dangers of opaque processes in speech policing.
In general, Meta reportedly grants a high percentage of Israeli government takedown requests, with compliance rates cited as 92% in 2023 and increasing since the conflict escalated. The documents reviewed suggest that Israel's censorship requests mirror those used for pro-Palestinian content during previous conflicts, indicating a lack of thorough review of such requests. Experts warn that this dynamic creates an imbalanced discourse in the context of the Iran war.