Public Security Minister Erdan: Internet companies must take active steps to detect, remove inciting posts • Facebook has “zero tolerance for terrorism,” company says • Justice Minister Shaked: Facebook removes 95% of posts over which Israel complains.
Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan and Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked met Monday with a delegation of Facebook executives in Jerusalem, to discuss efforts to curb incitement to violence and terrorism on the popular social network.
The Facebook delegation included the social media giant’s Vice President for Policy Joel Kaplan, Policy Director Monica Bickert, and Government Relations and Communications Director for Facebook-Israel Jordana Kotler. Head of the Cyber Department at the State Attorney’s Office Chaim Ismonsky, and head of the Police Cybercrimes Unit Chief Superintendent Meir Cheyun, attended the meeting as well.
Erdan and Shaked stressed that Facebook had both the responsibility and the ability to help eradicate online incitement to violence against Jews and Israelis, including incitement to terrorism, and it was agreed to increase the collaboration between Israeli teams appointed by the Public Security and Justice ministries and Facebook.
“Facebook and other internet companies have a responsibility for the content published on their platforms, especially when it promotes incitement and terrorism. They have to actively detect and remove such content,” Erdan said.
“The recent wave of terrorism has proven that social media has become a breeding ground for terrorism, and we must fight together to prevent this phenomenon. Internet companies can and must do more,” he said.
“Israel is at the forefront of the war on terror, as well as the war against online incitement. This week, when we mark the [15th] anniversary of 9/11, it is clear that there is a common interest for everyone who can come together and fight terrorism,” Shaked said, adding the Facebook executives “seem to understand they can of more in this fight.”
A statement by Facebook said: “A delegation of Facebook executives visited Israel as part of an ongoing dialogue with policymakers and experts worldwide, to ensure that content dealing with terrorism will be excluded from our platform and to support initiatives that seek to counter this phenomenon.
“Extremists operating online can be thwarted only through close collaboration between policymakers, civil society, academia, and internet companies. This is true in Israel and this is true everywhere in the world. We held constructive talks on these important issues, and we look forward to continued dialogue and collaboration.”
Facebook, the statement stressed, “Has zero tolerance for terrorism. We want people to feel safe when they use Facebook, and for this reason we have developed and defined clear community [user] rules, underscoring that there is no room on Facebook to content that promotes terrorism. We appreciate the time experts worldwide dedicate to help us understand local contexts, to further develop these rules.”
Kotler noted that since taking office in July, she has made considerable efforts to bring senior Facebook executives to Israel, so they could learn the issue firsthand. “I appreciate the collaboration extended by the relevant bodies with which we work, and I expect a continued and robust dialogue in the future.”
Also on Monday, Shaked spoke at the 16th Counterterrorism Conference in Herzliya and outlined Israel’s collaboration with social media giants Facebook and YouTube against online incitement.
According to the justice minister, between May and August, Israel has filed 158 incitement complaints with Facebook, and 13 complaints with YouTube, a Google Inc. company. Shaked noted that Facebook removed 95% of the content Israel complained about, while YouTube did the same for 80% of the complaints.
“In recent years, with the development of social networks, another form of fighting [incitement] has developed — digital warfare — meaning we cut terrorist from significant ‘oxygen,’ namely online incitement,” she said.
Israel is fighting online incitement and terrorism in a number of ways, including setting up a special division in the Cyber Department at the State Attorney’s Office, promoting the Facebook bill, mandating the removal of online incitement to terrorism, and aggravating the penalties for online incitement, Shaked noted.
“Digital warfare and financial warfare are just as important at fighting terrorism on a military level. Under my leadership, the Justice Ministry is leading the financial and digital war on terrorism. The 2016 terrorism model must be met with 2016-style fighting,” she concluded
YouTube is also a source of multiple antisemitic ‘films’ that should be removed. Everything from Protocols of Learned Elders of Zion to the Khazarian falsehood to fake Benjamin Freeman speech, anti-Holocaust and even an old Nazi anti-Rothchild B&W film.
The comments clearly indicate how provocative these films are. They need to be removed from circulation just as they were out of circulation prior to the internet and YouTube. They are dangerous to the Jewish community.
So far Zuck Suck(s). He will be judged by his actions or lack there off. The Shurat HaDin law suit must remain but only in the freezer!