Case Description
Due to a technical glitch, our public comments portal for cases related to the "From the River to the Sea" phrase closed earlier than planned. To ensure everyone has a chance to share their input, we've reopened it for 24 hours. The portal will now close at 12pm BST on May 23rd.
These three cases concern content decisions made by Meta, all on Facebook, which the Oversight Board intends to address together.
The three posts were shared by different users in November 2023, following the Hamas terrorist attacks of October 7 and the start of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. Each post contains the phrase “From the river to the sea.” All three were reported by users for violating Meta’s Community Standards. The company decided to leave all three posts on Facebook. For each case, the Board will decide whether the content should be removed under Meta’s policies and according to its human rights responsibilities. Numbers of views and reports are correct as of the end of February 2024.
The first case concerns a comment from a Facebook user on another user’s video. The video has a caption encouraging others to “speak up” with numerous hashtags including “#ceasefire” and “#freepalestine.” The comment on the post contains the phrase “FromTheRiverToTheSea” in hashtag form, as well as several additional hashtags including “#DefundIsrael.” The comment had about 3,000 views and was reported seven times by four users. The reports were closed after Meta’s automated systems did not send them for human review within 48 hours.
In the second case, a Facebook user posted what appears to be a generated image of fruit floating on the sea that form the words from the phrase, along with “Palestine will be free.” The post had about 8 million views and was reported 951 times by 937 users. The first report on the post was closed, again because Meta’s automated systems did not send it for human review within 48 hours. Subsequent reports by users were reviewed and assessed as non-violating by human moderators.
In the third case, a Facebook page reshared a post from the page of a community organization in Canada in which a statement from the “founding members” of the organization declared support for “the Palestinian people,” condemning their “senseless slaughter” by the “Zionist State of Israel” and “Zionist Israeli occupiers.” The post ends with the phrase “From The River To The Sea.” This post had less than 1,000 views and was reported by one user. The report was automatically closed.
The Facebook users who reported the content, and subsequently appealed Meta’s decisions to leave up the content to the Board, claimed the phrase was breaking Meta’s rules on Hate Speech, Violence and Incitement or Dangerous Organizations and Individuals. The user who reported the content in the first case stated that the phrase violates Meta’s policies prohibiting content that promotes violence or supports terrorism. The users who reported the content in the second and third cases stated that the phrase constitutes hate speech, is antisemitic and is a call to abolish the state of Israel.
After the Board selected these cases for review, Meta confirmed its original decisions were correct. Meta informed the Board that it analyzed the content under three policies – Violence and Incitement, Hate Speech and Dangerous Organizations and Individuals – and found the posts did not violate any of these policies. Meta explained the company is aware that “From the river to the sea” has a long history and that it had reviewed use of the phrase on its platform after October 7, 2023. After that review, Meta determined that, without additional context, it cannot conclude that “From the river to the sea” constitutes a call to violence or a call for exclusion of any particular group, nor that it is linked exclusively to support for Hamas.
The Board selected these cases to consider how Meta should moderate the use of the phrase given the resurgence in its use after October 7, 2023, and controversies around the phrase’s meaning. On the one hand, the phrase has been used to advocate for the dignity and human rights of Palestinians. On the other hand, it could have antisemitic implications, as claimed by the users who submitted the cases to the Board. This case falls within the Board’s strategic priority of Crisis and Conflict Situations.
The Board would appreciate public comments that address:
- The origin and current uses of the phrase: “From the river to the sea.”
- Research into online trends in content using the phrase.
- Research into any associated online and offline harms from the use of the phrase.
- Meta’s human rights responsibilities in relation to content using the phrase including freedom of expression, freedom of association, and equality and non-discrimination.
- State and institutional (e.g., university) responses to the use of the phrase (e.g., during protests) and the human rights impacts of those responses.
As part of its decisions, the Board can issue policy recommendations to Meta. While recommendations are not binding, Meta must respond to them within 60 days. As such, the Board welcomes public comments proposing recommendations that are relevant to these cases.
Comments
As a media platform with global reach and the potential for wide dissemination of information (and misinformation), Meta/Facebook must make careful considerations regarding censorship, review, and responsible content moderation. It is paramount that the Oversight Board consider the full scope and consequences of a decision before engaging in content removal. The decision to remove any posts that contain the phrase “From the river to the sea" would have been an incorrect decision, and we are pleased to see the Board's own findings regarding the dismissal of all three cases.
As quoted from the case description on OversightBoard.com, "After that review, Meta determined that, without additional context, it cannot conclude that “From the river to the sea” constitutes a call to violence or a call for exclusion of any particular group, nor that it is linked exclusively to support for Hamas." This decision reflects the common usage of the phrase "From the river to the sea" as a sentiment of liberty and peace for the people of Palestine. It represents the desire and goal of the Palestinians to one day live freely in the entirety of their homeland, as they are currently and have been for over 75 years living in a state of displacement, oppression, and apartheid.
The phrase is often used in posts that provide on-the-ground insight and evidence of Palestinian suffering in Gaza and the Occupied West Bank. Censoring or removing these posts would create a vacuum of information for those outside Palestine during such a crucial and tumultuous time of bombing, displacement, and famine. Additionally, social media sites such as Meta's Facebook and Instagram are pivotal for users to report on deaths, destruction of homes and hospitals, messages about "safe zones" directly from the Israeli military, to locate family and loved ones missing in the chaos of bombing and displacement, and to call for aid and coordinate safe passage out of militarized zones. Use of the phrase "From the river to the sea" in such posts, especially as a hashtag, allows users to easily find these crucial pieces of information which have been largely suppressed by Israeli media and western media outlets.
Those who label the phrase "From the river to the sea" as antisemitic are either ignorant to its historic and modern usage, or have a political bias towards the Israeli government which incentivizes them to further the suppression of Palestinian and pro-Palestinian voices in hopes of maintaining the one-sided Israeli narrative of the siege on Gaza. Reporters flagging the phrase misinterpret (perhaps deliberately) the sentiment to mean "From the river to the sea, only Palestinians will live in Palestine," or the even more bad faith accusation that it implies the removal or death of Israeli Jews currently living on occupied Palestinian land. This could not be further from the truth, as the phrase actually completes as follows: "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free." Palestinians live as second-class citizens under military law and apartheid in their own land; this is what they protest, not the presence of Jewish peoples in the land, who have historically lived peacefully alongside Palestinians, some of whom are Jewish themselves.
It would be deeply irresponsible for Meta to submit to intimidation by continuing to allow erroneous reporting and the application of any punitive measures to the posts and profiles using the phrase "From the river to the sea" which do not otherwise violate Meta's Community Standards. Antisemitism is a serious concern, and Meta is expected to facilitate an upstanding social environment in which no user group is unfairly targeted and discrimination is both discouraged and eliminated when found. Attempts to label the phrase “From the river to the sea" as antisemitic are obsfucating the meaning of antisemitism and diverting attention and resources away from real incidents of hate speech and the promotion of violence. It is important that Meta uses their power of content moderation responsibly and preserves the rights of all users to engage in free speech and sharing of information, including the Palestinian's assertion of their right to exist in peace and freedom.
“from the river you the sea” is not hate speech. palestinians—anyone—calling for their own freedom and equal rights in the place that they live is not terrorism. the state of israel has been criticized multiple times over its short existence for creating and upholding an apartheid state. it is similar to the segregation that existed in the usa until the civil rights movement are the establishment of the equality of all citizens under the law. palestinians have the right to agitate for their freedom within palestine. anti zionist is not antisemitic. there are thousands if not millions of anti-zionist jews. suppressing a freedom movement is just that: stressing a freedom movement. the complaints against the phrase “from the river to the sea” is from a particularly small and very vocal set of zionists who do not respect the human rights of palestinians.
“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” is an antisemitic slogan commonly featured in anti-Israel campaigns and chanted at demonstrations.
This rallying cry has long been used by anti-Israel voices, including supporters of terrorist organizations such as Hamas and the PFLP, which seek Israel’s destruction through violent means. It is fundamentally a call for a Palestinian state extending from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, territory that includes the State of Israel, which would mean the dismantling of the Jewish state. It is an antisemitic charge denying the Jewish right to self-determination, including through the removal of Jews from their ancestral homeland.
The area between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea, an area called Palestine. This is merely geography. Nothing dangerous about the phrase. What is everyone worried about?
Please remove “from the river to the sea” from your platform. It is a call for the complete eradication of the only jewish state in the world, Israel. It is a call to genocide all of the jews in Israel. It is not anything less than that. Please also remove “globalize the intifada” from your site as this encourages violent acts of terror against innocent civilians. It is horrifying that either are allowed on the Facebook and Instagram platforms. Please remove them both immediately - the jewish community is begging you.
The phrase in question is nothing but a call for freedom, liberation, and self-determination of the people of Palestine. The people of Palestine have been subjugated to a violent and brutal occupation by the apartheid state of Israel. Meta needs to stop censoring voices of Palestinians because they have every right to inform and use their voice in order to resist an occupation. So far, Meta has been on the wrong side of history and has supported the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza, West Bank, and all of historic Palestine. Meta must allow for freedom of speech and expression for all. The hate speech is actually coming from those who are in favor of the settler colonial state of Israel because they are the actual terrorizers and colonizers. They uphold a brutal apartheid system. Meta must do better and be on the right side of humanity. From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!
The phrase 'From the river to the sea Palestine will be free' is a call for the destruction of Israel and death of every non-muslim there, although it is likely that muslims who were happy living and working as Israelis would be killed as well
Meta has been surprising voices for change and voices for peace. The quote “from the river to the sea” Is an encouragement for peace negotiations rather than what has been deems an incite for violence. No one has wished violence using the hashtags of ceasefire.
The outrage felt by young people, the majority using these plate forms are outraged by the restrictions and obvious distractions from what is occurring in Palestine.
Freedom of speech should be allowed everywhere. A restriction of content is a loss of freedom and a sign of hatred.
Free our speech, free Palestine.
Meta would be nefarious to censor “from the river to the sea”. Israel is committing horrific crimes against humanity and violating many international laws. To hinder the Palestinians voice for freedom from this siege would clearly mark you as a proponent of Israel’s tactics and egregious violations. Shame on Meta for their involvement thus far changing the algorithm to promote violence.
Meta has been complicit in genocides around the world for a long time. The First one I noticed was the Rohingya Genocide in Myanmar, which Meta essentially claimed it was too incompetent to manage responsibly. Now, more than 200 days since the genocide in Gaza began--perpetuated and escalated by Israel--Meta has shown competence in suppressing speech that denounces acts of apartheid and racism, both individual and systemic. Meta has 'shadow banned' accounts that post content in support of Palestinians while allowing accounts with Zionist content to continue sharing their hateful and racist content with impunity. All of this needs to change for Meta to stop enabling the gross violations of international law and international human rights, because Meta is still complicit in genocide, and Meta appears to value being instrumental to spreading racist hatred throughout modern civilization.
Meta can change, and approach being a moral actor in the digital era, by ceasing the covert censorship of accounts in support of the Palestinian people and their right to live. Meta can also put those same energies towards restricting racist speech. "From The River to The Sea, Palestine Will Be Free" is not a statement of hatred, but one of liberation from an Apartheid occupation--liberation which international law recognizes as a necessary and inalienable part of the Palestinian people's Human Rights. For once, I want to see Meta stand in support of humanity and against racism; I think that would be a wonderful breath of fresh air for everyone.
I have had comments about praying for people in Palestine censored, videos about historical facts removed, and have seen the censorship and bias Meta has shown in regards to Israel vs. Palestine conflict. It has sickened me to see so many horrible comments about people wishing death on others while comments about praying for Palestine or its people get removed. I’ve seen harassment from pro-Israel accounts and reported comments but somehow they always end up not breaking Meta’s terms. It’s baffled me and is absolutely ridiculous the censorship that has been happening.
As explained by the American Jewish Congress:
“From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Free” is a rallying cry for terrorist groups and their sympathizers, from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) to Hamas, which called for Israel’s destruction in its original governing charter in 1988 and was responsible for the October 7, 2023 terror attack on Israeli civilians, murdering over 1,200 people in the single deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.
It is also a common call-to-arms for pro-Palestinian activists, especially student activists on college campuses.
It calls for the establishment of a State of Palestine from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea —ERASING the State of Israel and its people instead of building a peaceful two state solution of coexistence.
Frankly, it’s crazy and insulting that the question needs to be asked — the phrase is so obviously hateful, bigoted and calling for violence. It should be banned from social media platforms as inciting hate and divisiveness.
I find it ridiculous that you censor and swiftly ban and remove comments that advocate for anti-colonialism, anti-racism and anti-bigotry, yet let dangerous bigots and terrorists like Andrew Tate, Donald Trump, Jordan Peterson and so many others spew hate that results in violence for marginalised groups. You actively push their content to traumatise minority groups and embolden bigots. This blatant bias is appalling and must end.
I am not sure how there is any question about the meaning and intent of the phrase, "From the River to the Sea." The River and Sea that the phrase refers to are the Jordan and the Mediteranean - the borders of the country of Israel. This phrase has long been known as a call for a one-state solution that would erase Israel from the map and hand the land over to a group of people who have elected terrorists to govern them. This phrase is obviously antisemitic and most definitely anti-Jew as it quite plainly states that it's goal is to eradicate Jewish people from their homeland of Israel.
If Meta protects this vile propaganda as free speech, as opposed to the actual HATE speech that it is, your company will be complicit in sending a very loud message to the world that Israel - and therefore Jews - do not have the right to exist.
I strongly encourage you to disallow the phrase “From the river to the sea” on your platform. There is no additional context needed: this phrase calls for the eradication of Israel and Israelis. This is their home, a place they have lived for thousands of years, well before Israel was made its own nation. Without this home, where will all the Jews who live there go? This phrase is pure hatred and antisemitism and only fuels the very hot fire. Please remove these posts and any others that contain this hateful phrase. People can certainly call for peace and protection of their people without it.
This is a very insightful post from an Israeli Jewish person:
"From the river to the sea" is originally a Zionist slogan which communicated that European Jews were going to convert everything from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean into a Jewish state. This obviously required ethnic cleansing and subjugating the indigenous Palestinians.
"From the river to the sea" is embedded in the original charter of the most popular political party in Israel, Likud, which is also Netanyahu's party. They call for the active Jewish colonization and absorption of the lands that are Palestine (i.e., they are actively calling for and carrying out the destruction of Palestine).
"From the river to the sea," when used in reference to Palestine, is only part of the phrase. The rest is "Palestine will be free." It is a call for freedom.
It is not a call for destruction or genocide or ethnic cleansing like the Zionist usage does. It means what it says: Palestinians living in a state of freedom from the West Bank's eastern border (Jordan River) to Gaza's western border (Mediterranean Sea).
So, you might be a racist if:
1. You think it's only wrong for Palestinians to use the slogan when Zionists invented it and are still actively using it.
2. You think Palestinian freedom is somehow antisemitic or incompatible with Israel's existence.
And my own short perspective: This phrase as used in the “From the River to the sea, Palestine will be free” does not call for violence or for trampling on anybody’s human rights, let alone wiping anybody from anywhere! It calls for an end to a brutal regime of occupation and apartheid, and for the freedom and equal rights for everyone living in that region. Banning this slogan means that we believe freedom of Palestinians is somehow linked to the destruction of Israel as a state and as a people! That’s an awful conclusion to make and means only one group of people can have their human rights respected!
Israël zionistes are committing a genocide and an ethnical cleansing of the Palestinians to steal the land from the natives.
Israël is not above the law.
We demand justice and for all terrorist criminal zionistes to be expelled from Palestine.
Geneva law must be respected. Palestine has the right to resist their brutal occupation, and Israël has not the right to defend themselves from the ones they occupy.
The people are the power of the world, not the governments. If the governments are committing crimes, we the people have the legal right to resist and to demand a new government that represents the people by respecting human laws and equal rights.
The free people of the world have in majority demanded that Palestine will be free from its brutal occupier. This means that the illegal settlers must leave Palestine.
Palestine must be given the right of self-determination and to appoint their own government.
The people refuse a 2 states solution because of the cruelty and racisme of the zionistes. There is no possibility for a peaceful coexistence.
The people of the free world have the legal right to express their opinions without being silenced by meta or any other platform. Neither has any government have the right to use any form of violence to silence people or to deny the people their basic legal constitutionnel rights to express their opinions, to manifest their demands, to protest against injustices, to strike or to resist as long as it is done in a peaceful manner without breaking any law.
All the governments and the law institutions are complicit with the genocide on Palestinians.
The international laws clearly stipulate that aiding and embedding a genocide is illegal. Everyone who did not respect this law should be held accountable for the killing of innocent civilians in Palestine. The brutal massacres have absolutely nothing to do with Israël defending themselves, and that's easy to prove because we have 10000ths of images from Gaza and the West bank to prove the intent of genocide and ethnic cleansing.
The censoring of the voices of the people is utterly illegal and excludes the people from having their opinions.
Meta takes down all pro Palestinian content, even if they are not against any rules of Meta itself.
Meta unfollows the people we are following all the time. Meta suppresses the Palestinian content.
They spam content because they haven't found a legal excuse to take the comments down.
The free people of the world stand in solidarity with the Palestinian resistance because they have the right to be free and to be liberated from their brutal occupiers.
76 years of brutal occupation, stealing land, illegal settlements, continuesly slaughtering of the Palestinians. Holding innocent Palestinians hostages, even children, are being illegally arrested and tortured and humiliated in Israël prisons.
During the first Nakba, millions of Palestinians were forced to leave their land and never had the right to return because of the illegal "law of no return."
Israël then decided to invite jews from the whole world to come and live in Palestine!
We have the right, and we will continue to boycott all Israël "products. We will do this forever. We have the right to purchase whatever we want.
Being fired from our jobs for being pro Palestine is illegal, and our governments have the responsibility to protect us from these illegal actions that can put us in danger just for expressing our opinions.
The US, the UK, and Germany are actively helping Israël in committing this genocide.
They must be juged along with Israël in the Hague, Internationale court of justice.
The internationale Criminal Court must do its job and arrest the criminal Netanyahu and his government. Why isn't the arrest being issued already when we have witnessed all the evidence of genocide. Even all the UN representatives have submitted all the files with proof of intent for the genocide?
“From the river to the sea” isn't referring to Gaza. It means they want the whole of Isreal from the Jordan river to the Mediterranean Sea by killing Jews to clear the land. It’s a call for the mass genocide of Jews.
Framing “From the River to the Sea” as hate speech or anti-Semitic or anything other than a call for liberation of the Palestinian who are, in fact, under an oppressive occupying force represented by Israel, is deliberately manipulating the definition of words. It is not hate speech and stating that is reveals either a willful violence toward the Palestine or an unfortunate naïveté about the intentions of those in power. Even offering this up for a debate is a form of violence being perpetuated by Meta.