Russia threatens Instagram ban in response to Meta allowing violent threats against soldiers

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Russian officials have called on Meta to be designated as an Extremist organization and banned from using social media.

Russia's Prosecutor General has filed a petition to ban Meta Platforms Inc. from the territory of the Russian Federation.

Alexander Khinshtein, the head of the Committee on Information Policy, has called for a ban on the photo-sharing website if reports are true that Meta adjusted its moderation policies to allow users to call for violence against Russian soldiers. As soon as possible, the agency asked Meta to confirm or refute the reports.

If Meta confirms or declines to comment, that will be a reason to take the toughest measures, according to Khinshtein.

The policy changes have been confirmed by Meta. According to the internal emails sent to Facebook and Instagram, they should allow T1 violent speech that would otherwise be removed under the Hate Speech policy if it was targeting Russian soldiers or prisoners of war.

The New York Times reported that the changes apply to users in many countries.

Meta made changes to its policies on violent speech as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to Andy Stone.

Although Facebook has been blocked in Russia, it has not been censured.