Facebook on Tuesday reiterated its ban on accounts that support, praise, or represent the Taliban as the militant group has rapidly swept through much of Afghanistan, including the capital city of Kabul.
The policy, which falls under the company’s Dangerous Organizations provisions, is enforced by a “dedicated team of Afghanistan experts who are native Dari and Pashto speakers, and have knowledge of local context.”
The decision also applies to Instagram and WhatsApp, both of which are owned by Facebook.
“The Taliban is sanctioned as a terrorist organization under U.S. law, and we have banned them from our services under our Dangerous Organization policies,” Facebook told the Washington Examiner in an email.
TALIBAN SPOKESMEN USE TWITTER TO BROADCAST UPDATES ON AFGHANISTAN AS TRUMP REMAINS BANNED
“Regardless of who holds power, we will take the appropriate action against accounts and content that breaks our rules,” the company added.
The same policy does not appear to be shared by Twitter, as the site allows Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid to broadcast content to his 287,000 followers. He uses social media to assert that the overthrow has been largely peaceful despite reports to the contrary. The site is also home to Qari Yousef Ahmadi and Suhail Shaheen, two more of the militant group’s spokesmen.
Questions have been raised about Twitter’s motives after it permanently banned former President Donald Trump from the website following remarks in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Facebook has since done the same.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“Big Tech gives a platform to America’s enemies and all who hate our freedoms, yet banned the highest vote-getting incumbent president in history, President Trump, and deplatforms, censors, and shadow-bans his tens of millions of supporters,” Liz Harrington, a spokeswoman for the 45th president, told the Washington Examiner on Monday.
Hundreds of people in Afghanistan have frantically arrived at Kabul’s airport in the hope that they will be able to board a plane to flee the country. The United States on Tuesday resumed airlift operations after a brief hiatus following overcrowding concerns on the runway. At least seven have been pronounced dead in the area amid the turmoil, and the Pentagon said U.S. troops, which now stand at around 7,000, killed two armed individuals.
