Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, etc… Send threatening messages to acquaintances
Purpose of using war propaganda tools… “In a way you’ve never seen before.”
Meta “Establishment of a Hebrew and Arabic specialized response team for monitoring”
As the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian armed faction Hamas intensifies, it has been revealed that Hamas is using hostages’ social media accounts to upload terrorist videos.
According to the New York Times (NYT) on the 17th (local time), Hamas is hijacking the social media accounts of Israeli hostages and sending violent messages to their acquaintances and posting videos. These accounts are being used as propaganda tools for war.
Hamas members logged into the hostages’ personal social media accounts and broadcast their terrorist activities live on the 7th. Afterwards, Hamas used Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp chat on several occasions to send death threats and intimidating messages to the hostage’s acquaintances, adding to the anxiety.
According to acquaintances of some of the kidnapped victims, Hamas members also took over the hostages’ cell phones and made taunting calls to their friends and relatives.
Israeli military authorities said at least 199 Israelis were being held hostage by Hamas.
Extremist groups have long used social media to promote their cause by livestreaming terrorist activities and posting propaganda.
Professor Thomas Reed of Johns Hopkins University in the United States said, “Hijacking hostages’ social media accounts to conduct propaganda is a method we have never seen before,” and added, “We are not psychologically prepared for this.”
These tactics are especially traumatic for the account holder and their close family members or acquaintances, making an already painful situation even worse.
Keren de Bia, whose relative was taken hostage by Hamas, said she felt hopeful the moment she received a message from her kidnapped family member or saw a video posted on their account, but despaired when she found out it was posted by a Hamas member.
De Via explained the situation at the time, saying, “I felt hopeful for a moment, but then I became confused.”
A Facebook security team member, who declined to disclose his identity, told NYT, “We confirmed that Hamas accessed the Facebook account of an Israeli held hostage and started broadcasting live and posting,” adding, “This has been happening since the moment Hamas’ attack began.” “It appears to be part of the strategy,” he said.
Meta, which runs Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, declined NYT’s request for comment, but said it had set up a special response team comprised of Hebrew- and Arabic-speaking experts to closely monitor and respond to the rapidly evolving situation. “I did it,” he said.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.