The Combat Antisemitism Movement, a prominent watchdog on antisemitism, has strongly criticized the recommendation by Meta Platforms’ oversight board to permit the use of the Arabic term “shaheed,” meaning martyr, on Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms.

Sacha Roytman Dratwa, CEO of the Combat Antisemitism Movement, expressed concern, stating, “The word ‘Shaheed’ is an honorific term for murderers. The recommendation by Meta’s Oversight Board could be seen as giving a green light for the glorification of murder.”

The statement comes in response to the recent recommendation by Meta Platforms’ oversight board to lift the ban on the term “shaheed” after a yearlong review. Currently, Meta removes any posts using “shaheed” to refer to individuals listed on its roster of “dangerous organizations and individuals,” which includes members of Islamist terrorist groups.

“We call on Meta to disregard this deeply concerning recommendation and to continue removing the word ‘shaheed,’ which is predominantly used to glorify terror and violence,” Roytman Dratwa emphasized.

In a contrasting viewpoint, Oversight Board co-chair Helle Thorning-Schmidt stated, “Meta has been operating under the assumption that censorship can and will improve safety, but the evidence suggests that censorship can marginalize whole populations while not improving safety at all.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)