“Die Khamenei” is Allowed on Facebook, Meta Ambiguity in Prohibition of Violent Speech

Meta makes exceptions to violent speech in Iran. (photo: dock. Pixabay)

JAKARTA - The Meta Oversight Board on Monday, January 9 overturned the company's decision to remove Facebook posts that used the slogan "Death to Khamenei" to criticize the Iranian leader. Meta said the calls did not violate any rules against threats of violence.

The council, which is funded by Meta but operates independently, said in a ruling that the phrase is often used to mean "down with Khamenei" in reference to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has led a violent crackdown on nationwide protests in recent months.

They also urged the company to develop better ways to incorporate such context into its content policies and spell out clearly when rhetorical threats against heads of state are permitted.

"In the context of the post, and the wider social, political and linguistic situation in Iran, 'Khamenei's marg bar' should be understood as 'falling together.' That is rhetoric, a political slogan, not a credible threat," the council wrote.

Iran has been gripped by demonstrations since mid-September, following the death of a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman who was arrested for wearing "inappropriate clothing" under the country's strict dress code for women.

The protests, in which demonstrators from all walks of life call for the fall of Iran's ruling theocracy, have been one of the biggest challenges to the government of the Shia-ruled Islamic Republic since the 1979 revolution.

The rioting created a now familiar conundrum for Meta, which has repeatedly faltered in its treatment of the violent political rhetoric on its platform.

The company prohibits language that incites "serious violence" but aims to avoid overreach by limiting enforcement to credible threats, leaving ambiguity around when and how those rules apply.

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After Russia invaded Ukraine last year, for example, Meta introduced a temporary exemption to allow death calls to Russian President Vladimir Putin, aiming to provide space for users in the region to express their anger at the war.

However, days later the exemption was reversed after Reuters reported its existence.

Meta is also facing scrutiny over how its platform was used to organize ahead of the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. Phrases such as "kill them all" appeared in thousands of US-based Facebook Groups prior to the attacks, including calls for violence against certain US political leaders.

The Oversight Board said in its ruling that the "death to Khamenei" statement was different from threats posted around January 6, because the politician was then "clearly at risk" in the US context and "death" is not a rhetorical statement in English.