Hostage families file NIS 4B class-action lawsuit against Meta

The suit seeks NIS 200,000 ($64,338) for each victim whose suffering was documented online and for close relatives who viewed it.

By David Israel, TPS

Families of Israeli hostages and other victims of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack have filed a NIS 4 billion (about $1.1 billion) class-action lawsuit against Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.

They allege the company’s platforms facilitated terrorism and compounded the suffering of Israelis held captive by Hamas.

The motion was filed in Tel Aviv District Court and must first be certified as a class action. Plaintiffs say the platforms became “an integral part of the terrorist attack on Israel,” carrying live and recorded footage of killings and abductions.

They claim Meta failed to remove the footage in real time and left some of it online for hours or even days.

Among the plaintiffs is the mother of a female hostage who learned of her daughter’s fate on Instagram while the attack was being broadcast.

Another learned through Facebook that his family was being held. A mother and her 14-year-old daughter, who say the footage traumatized them, also signed on.

The suit seeks NIS 200,000 ($64,338) for each victim whose suffering was documented online and for close relatives who viewed it.

It also seeks NIS 20,000 ($6,433) for every Israeli exposed to the footage.

Meta rejects the portrayal. Expressing sympathy for the families, the company says it removes content that supports or glorifies Hamas.

It adds that it did not sit idly by and deployed dedicated teams of experts, including Hebrew and Arabic speakers, to monitor and remove violating content.