Meta shutdowns Instagram account of Palestinian journalist Anas Al-Sharif : Valley Vision

Meta has suspended the Instagram account of Palestinian journalist Anas Al-Sharif, which had over a million followers, and with a view rate exceeding one billion.

The Al Jazeera journalist called the Meta’s move a “broader effort to suppress Palestinian contents.”

Anas Al-Sharif is one of Al Jazeera Arabic’s correspondents whom Israel accused in October as an ‘operative’ working for Hamas’s armed wing, allegedly promoting the group’s ‘propaganda’ in the besieged and bombarded enclave.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has denied Israeli allegations stating,“Israel has repeatedly made similar unproven claims without producing credible evidence.”

Anas has been subject to various threats from occupation army officials, disclosing his location, and instructing him to cease coverage and leave northern Gaza. Al-sharif’s 65-year-old father has been killed in an Israeli air strike in his home.

The suspension of Anas Al-Sharif’s account has sparked concerns among activists and supporters of Palestinian rights, who fear that it could be a deliberate attempt to silence dissenting voices and censor information regarding the Palestinian cause.  

Ahmed Qurai took to X stating,” We must respond to them by flooding their pro-genocide space with the news of Palestine exposing Zionist entity. They will regret silencing the voice of millions that have become loud”.

Another user referred to the move as a “shameful behaviour by Meta.”

Meanwhile, the backup account of  Al-sharif created to continue documenting the ongoing atrocities in Gaza gained more than one lakh followers in just a day.

According to a report published by Human Rights Watch (HRW) last December, Meta pulled down or suppressed hundreds of pro-Palestine posts due to flawed content moderation policies, poor implementation, and “undue government influence”.

The report documented a pervasive “pattern of undue removal and suppression of protected speech, including peaceful expression in support of Palestine and public debate about Palestinian human rights”.

Instagrams current move confirms the HRW findings on Meta’s censorship.