Russia demands that US stop Meta’s “extremist activities”

Russia’s embassy in the United States demanded on Friday that Washington stop the “extremist activities” of Facebook owner Meta Platforms, which has temporarily lifted a ban on calls for violence against the Russian military and leadership.

Meta Platforms will allow Facebook and Instagram users in some countries to call for violence against Russians and Russian soldiers in the context of the Ukraine invasion, according to internal emails seen by Reuters on Thursday, in a temporary change to its hate speech policy. 

“Meta’s aggressive and criminal policy leading to incitement of hatred and hostility towards Russians is outrageous,” the Russian embassy said in a statement. “The company’s actions are yet another evidence of the information war without rules declared on our country.”

The embassy said it wanted the US authorities to “stop the extremist activities of Meta and take measures to bring the perpetrators to justice”.