Facebook deletes Iranian accounts amid Trump campaign
Facebook deletes 82 Iranian accounts, three months after killing hundreds of accounts associated with the country, which is the target of intensified US government sanctions.
The social media company said on Friday that the accounts had attracted more than one million followers in the United States and Britain.
Some of the accounts were featured on Facebook’s sister social networking platform Instagram, the company said, claiming that it had detected “coordinated activity” between the accounts earlier in the month.
‘War room’
The company said it had set up a "war room" at its Menlo Park, California headquarters, staffed with more than 20,000 workers assigned to take action against certain accounts.
Back in August, Facebook and Twitter suspended hundreds of accounts linked with Iran which had reportedly gathered close to a million followers.
Among the accounts was one belonging to the Quest 4 Truth (Q4T) Iranian media organization, which promotes Islamic values.
A similar move was taken by Google against 39 YouTube channels at the time.
The channels reportedly belonged to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), which condemned the move as a “coordinated” campaign and a "clear example of censorship" aimed at preventing the dissemination of truth and alternative viewpoints online.
In taking down Iranian accounts, Facebook claimed Friday that they spread “large volumes of divisive political content such as race relations, police brutality, and US President Donald Trump."
The content was aimed at "sowing discord," Facebook said.
Trump has taken an extremely confrontational approach toward Iran since coming to office, pulling the US out of a landmark nuclear deal with Tehran and imposing the most draconian sanctions on the country.
American social media and internet giants have likewise targeted hundreds of Russian accounts which they have accused of serving Moscow’s interests.
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