Amid Anti-BDS Pressure, Facebook Israel Appoints Long-Time Netanyahu Advisor To Policy Post
Is Mark Zuckerberg's war on so-called 'fake' news on Facebook really about censorship?
JERUSALEM — An advisor to
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is taking a top post at
Facebook amid calls for increased censorship on the social network.
Facebook recently announced that
Jordana Cutler would head policy and communications at the social media
giant’s Israel office. Cutler currently works as the chief of staff for
the Israeli Embassy in Washington, and is a long-time advisor to the
prime minister.
“The appointment comes amidst growing
Israeli government frenzy concerning incitement allegations and BDS,
the global non-violent movement against the Israeli occupation of
Palestine, whose often viral presence online exposes Israeli human
rights violations,” wrote Dorgham Abusalim, a foreign policy analyst at Mondoweiss, on Monday.
The international success of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement has led to increased efforts to ban the movement
by the Israeli government and its allies. Abusalim reported that Gilad
Erdan, Israel’s minister of public security, strategic affairs and
information, linked Cutler’s new job title to legislative efforts to ban
BDS during a recent policy discussion at IDC Herzliya, an Israeli think
tank.
