The European Commissioner, Thierry Breton, has given Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, a 24-hour ultimatum to remove pro-Hamas content from its platforms. Breton expressed concerns to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg that failure to address this issue promptly could result in the company violating new EU regulations. In his letter, Breton stressed the need to remove illegal terrorist content and hate speech, particularly during the ongoing conflict in Israel.
Breton’s letter pointed out that following terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas against Israel, there is evidence that Meta’s platforms are being used to disseminate illegal content and disinformation within the EU. He emphasized the urgency of ensuring that Meta’s systems are effective in addressing this issue and called on the company to cooperate with relevant law enforcement authorities and Europol. Breton also underlined the importance of complying with the Digital Services Act (DSA) rules, particularly in terms of prompt, diligent, and objective action when dealing with notices of illegal content in the EU.
In response, a Meta spokesperson stated that the company had established a special operations center with experts, including those proficient in Hebrew and Arabic, following the Hamas attacks on Israel. The company’s teams are actively working to maintain platform safety, take action against content that violates policies or local laws, and collaborate with third-party fact-checkers in the region to combat misinformation.
Furthermore, Thierry Breton issued a similar letter to Elon Musk, the owner of X, expressing concerns about illegal content being spread on Musk’s social network and calling for swift action to address the issue.
