Facebook, Twitter remove Abe assassination videos from platforms

The father of Twitter and Facebook, Meta, said Friday that they will delete any video from the assassination of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe who violate their rules on harmful content.

Several videos of the attack circulated on social media showing a gunman firing twice at Abe with a double-barreled weapon. Some only showed the moments before and after the attack while others showed both shots.

Abe, who resigned in 2020, was shot moments in a speech, transported to hospital and later pronounced dead. Police arrested the alleged gunman at the scene.

Meta said he was deleting videos that represented the time of the attack and that he had disabled the suspect’s Facebook and Instagram accounts.

“We are deeply saddened and shocked by the death of the former Prime Minister of Japan, Mr. Shinzo Abe,” Meta said in a prepared statement.

“We do not tolerate or will tolerate any violent behavior on our platform. To keep our platform a safe place to connect, we are working to remove any content that violates the incident,” he said.

Meta said it took action under its policy on dangerous people and is labeling still photographs of the attack as “disruptive.”

Twitter said its enforcement teams were working to “address the harmful content” related to the attack by “proactively removing” material that violates its rules, which includes restrictions on sensitive media, including graphic violence.

Twitter urged users to flag any material from the attack on Abe that they believe should be treated as sensitive so that it can take action.

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• shinzo abe
• Asia
• Japan