PUTRAJAYA, Aug 1 — The government is requesting Meta Platforms Inc to explain why only posts by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim regarding the assassination of Hamas Political Bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh were targeted and removed.
Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said the government regrets the taking down of the posts and is awaiting an explanation on whether the removal was done automatically by Meta or based on complaints received from the public.
"All social media platforms have their own procedures or community guidelines and standards, and they may take down posts based on their respective guidelines.
"We will wait for Meta's explanation," he said during a press conference today.
Fahmi, who is also the Unity Government spokesman, said that so far, no media organisations have had their posts about the Prime Minister's comments on conversations with representatives of Hamas or the killing of Haniyeh taken down, except for Bernama Radio.
“If there are any media colleagues who experience this (post removals), please inform the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission to reinstate the posts,” he said.
Regarding the heinous killing of Haniyeh, who was also a former Palestinian prime minister, Fahmi said the government views the incident as an attempt to sabotage the ongoing peace and ceasefire process.
"Yesterday, the Cabinet meeting unanimously condemned Haniyeh's murder as extremely brutal and barbaric," he said.
The government will send a representative of a Malaysian mission (Malawakil) to attend Haniyeh's funeral, which will be held in Qatar today.
"The Cabinet could not send a representative to Haniyeh's funeral because it will be held today, so there was not enough time.
"Therefore, a Malawakil representative will attend on behalf of the government," Fahmi said.
The Iranian media reported that Haniyeh was killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting his accommodation in northern Tehran around 2am local time yesterday. He was in Tehran for the inauguration ceremony of Iran's new president.
— Bernama
