Erdoğan calls Meta's whitewashing efforts for Israel's war crimes "digital fascism"

Pointing to a "digital fascism that cannot even tolerate photos of Palestinian martyrs and bans them instantly, yet markets this as freedom," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said: "Social media platforms show great care in adhering to the rules in the US and Europe, but deliberately withhold the same diligence when it comes to Türkiye."

"The more alarming aspect of the issue is that these institutions and companies are even more indifferent about the Palestine issue than they are about other matters," he said.

"Social media companies have especially gone overboard and almost become militant. They see it as their duty to immediately censor even a simple sentence criticizing Israel."

"The martyrdom of Ismail Haniyeh has clearly shown us that the limits of freedom of thought and expression in Western countries are defined by Israeli whims," Erdoğan said.

"At this point, we are witnessing firsthand how social media companies behave like mafias in matters that affect their interests," Erdoğan said.

He said Türkiye has been subject to similar double standards many times before.

Despite warnings from Turkish authorities, these platforms are rife with members of terrorist organizations, from the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) to the PKK terrorist group.

Türkiye has expressed its concerns on this issue many times before, said Erdoğan, adding they have also tried to establish a channel of dialogue through relevant institutions.

"However, we have not yet fully achieved the desired level of cooperation," the president said.