Meta, the parent company of the social network Facebook and Instagram, plans to allow calls for violence against Russians in response to the Ukraine attack, media reports said Friday.
“As a result of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, we have temporarily created allowances for forms of political expression that typically violate our rules, such as violent rhetoric such as the ‘death of Russian invaders’. We still will not allow credible calls for violence against Russian civilians,” Said in a statement.
The Sputnik news agency reported that the US media giant was approving posts in several countries, including Russia, Ukraine and Poland, calling for the death of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
The decision comes days after Russia blocked access to Facebook and other social media platforms, saying it discriminated against Russian media and information sources.
Media reports say the BBC and Deutsche Welle’s Russian websites, Twitter and Apple and Google’s App Store have all been blocked.
“In March 2022, it was decided in the Russian Federation (owned by Meta Platform) to block access to the Facebook network,” the Russian media regulator said in a statement.
Meta President Nick Clegg says the company is doing “everything we can to restore our services.”
Russia launched a “military operation” in Ukraine on February 24, claiming that Donetsk and Luhansk had responded to calls for a separate republic to protect against an attack by Ukrainian troops.
Russia’s Defense Ministry says the special operation is aimed only at Ukraine’s military infrastructure and that civilians are not at risk.
Several countries, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, have announced widespread sanctions against Russia, prompting many international businesses to leave the Russian market.