Facebook Suspends Netanyahu's Page over Hate Speech Against Arabs

 Benjamin Netanyahu blamed a staffer for the offending post. Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters
Benjamin Netanyahu blamed a staffer for the offending post. Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters
TT
20

Facebook Suspends Netanyahu's Page over Hate Speech Against Arabs

 Benjamin Netanyahu blamed a staffer for the offending post. Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters
Benjamin Netanyahu blamed a staffer for the offending post. Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters

Facebook has suspended a chatbot on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's official page after it breached hate speech policy by posting a message warning against Arabs who “want to destroy us all”.

Facebook said on Thursday it had suspended the automated chat function on the page, which is run by Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party, for 24 hours.

“After careful review of the Likud campaign’s bot activities, we found a violation of our hate speech policy,” Facebook said in a statement.

"We also found that the bot was misusing the platform in the time period allowed to contact people. As a result, we temporarily suspended the bot for 24 hours. Should there be any additional violations, we will continue to take appropriate action," the statement added.

According to AFP, Netanyahu has long faced accusations from critics that he has demonised Israel's 1.4 million Arab citizens with his political rhetoric.

Last week, Netanyahu pushed for last-minute legislation that would allow party officials to bring cameras into polling stations.

Critics said it was a clear attempt to intimidate Israel’s Arab population into not voting



Red Sea Marine Traffic Up 60% after Houthis Narrowed Targets

Armed men stand on the beach as the Galaxy Leader commercial ship, seized by Yemen's Houthis last month, is anchored off the coast of al-Salif, Yemen, December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
Armed men stand on the beach as the Galaxy Leader commercial ship, seized by Yemen's Houthis last month, is anchored off the coast of al-Salif, Yemen, December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
TT
20

Red Sea Marine Traffic Up 60% after Houthis Narrowed Targets

Armed men stand on the beach as the Galaxy Leader commercial ship, seized by Yemen's Houthis last month, is anchored off the coast of al-Salif, Yemen, December 5, 2023. (Reuters)
Armed men stand on the beach as the Galaxy Leader commercial ship, seized by Yemen's Houthis last month, is anchored off the coast of al-Salif, Yemen, December 5, 2023. (Reuters)

Red Sea marine traffic has increased by 60% to 36-37 ships a day since August 2024, but is still short of volumes seen before Yemen's Houthis began attacking ships in the region, according to the commander of the EU's Aspides naval mission.

The number of merchant ships using the narrow Bab al-Mandab strait increased after missile and drone attacks by the Houthis slowed and the US and the extremist group signed a ceasefire deal, Rear Admiral Vasileios Gryparis said in an interview in Madrid.

But shipping traffic, which reached a low of 20-23 ships daily in August last year, is still short of an average of 72-75 ships a day seen before the Houthis began attacks in the Red Sea in November in 2023 in support of Palestinians over Israel's war in Gaza, said Gryparis.

The mission, which was established to safeguard navigation in the strategic trade route linking the Mediterranean with the Gulf of Asia through the Suez Canal, was extended in February when it was also tasked with tracking illegal arms shipments and monitoring vessels carrying sanctioned Russian oil.

The last attack on a merchant ship took place in November 2024 and the Houthis have also narrowed their objectives, saying their targets are Israeli ships and ships that have a connection with Israel or have docked at an Israeli port, Gryparis said.

"If you have a vessel that does not correspond to this criteria... there is a huge possibility - more than 99% - that you're not going to be targeted by the Houthis," Gryparis said.

Still, Gryparis said he could not guarantee that merchant ships won't be attacked.

Some companies have been deterred from using the route because of the mission's lack of ships, which can cause delays of as much as a week for those seeking to be escorted through the area, he said.

He said the mission has between two and three ships operating at one time and has requested the EU provide it with 10 ships to increase its capacity for protection.

The mission has provided close protection to 476 ships, shot down 18 drones, destroyed two remote-controlled boats used to attack ships and intercepted four ballistic missiles, he said.