Ahead of next week’s elections, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Facebook page has been sanctioned for a post that the company said violated its hate speech policy.
A post on the social media site called for voters to help prevent the formation of a government composed of “Arabs who want to destroy us all — women, children, and men.” The incendiary post created outrage among opposition politicians.
Facebook responded Thursday by suspending the page’s bot, an automated chat function, according to the Associated Press. Netanyahu, 69, claimed that he didn’t write the post and that it was a mistake by a staffer which was soon removed.
The Sept. 17 elections follow prior elections in April. Netanyahu failed to form a governing coalition, the first time in Israeli history. Netanyahu has worked to use his close ties with President Trump to his and his party’s advantage and has made policy promises to shore up nationalistic voters.
