New York/Gaza: A serious case of online content censorship has emerged as YouTube, the popular video-sharing platform, has deleted at least 700 videos that highlighted Israeli atrocities and human rights violations in Palestine. This action comes amidst an intense global debate regarding accountability for Israeli military actions.
According to a report by the American journal The Intercept, the deleted videos belonged to three prominent Palestinian human rights organizations: Al-Haq, Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights. The footage included documentary evidence of victims of alleged Israeli genocide in Gaza, images of destroyed areas, and records of severe incidents, including the killing of a Palestinian-American journalist.
The report suggests that YouTube’s action followed pressure from a US-based campaign seemingly aimed at preventing accountability for Israeli war crimes. The decision surfaced specifically at a time when the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of crimes against humanity.
YouTube, which is owned by Google, confirmed the move, clarifying that the relevant accounts were suspended based on US trade and other sanctions laws. YouTube spokesperson, Booth Bullwinkel, affirmed that Google is committed to full compliance with applicable sanctions and trade regulations.
However, Katherine Gallagher, a senior attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights, sharply criticized the action, terming it a continuation of the “US government’s agenda” aimed at concealing evidence of human rights violations and war crimes from the public eye. A spokesperson for Al-Haq further revealed that their YouTube channel was shut down without any prior notification, which they stated constitutes a serious violation of the platform’s own transparency principles.
