There has been a growing trend on TikTok and other social media platforms of posts threatening Israeli officials.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
A 40-year old resident of Beersheba was arrested over posts on the social media platform TikTok that contained “serious incitement to murder” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The cyber branch of Israel Police’s Lahav 433 made the arrest and held the suspect for questioning.
There has been a growing trend on TikTok and other social media platforms of posts threatening Israeli officials.
The police have declined to publicize details about the menacing content except to say it contained explicit threats against the Prime Minister.
After the initial questioning, the suspect will appear before the Rishon Lezion Magistrate’s Court to determine how long he will remain in custody.
In addition to threatening content, TikTok has been home to anti-Israel sentiment, a trend that has intensified since the beginning of the war between Israel and Hamas.
TikTok has demonstrated a clear anti-Israel bias, refusing to post ads for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza, while posting plenty of pro-Palestinian ads.
In addition, screenshots from the company’s internal chat show TikTok employees celebrating the October 7th massacre and Houthi missile strikes against Israel.
The Chinese-owned company refused to post paid ads sponsored by the Hostages and Missing Persons Forum in Israel appealing for the safe return of their loved ones because they were “overly graphic or political,” as reported by Fox News.
However, copies of these paid ads simply show images of the hostages engaged in ordinary activities, such as dancing or watching football.
Advertisement specialist Yossi Lobton, who represents the hostage families told Fox News: “Our campaign is based on humanitarian policy. Kidnapping kids and civilians is a war crime and Hamas must free them.”
However, TikTok insisted that “their policy prohibits financed campaigns that emphasize overly graphic or political content.”
TikTok has been criticized for not doing enough to combat antisemitism on its platform. A memo that was shown to Fox Digital was written by a senior TikTok employee who admits to allowing an unequal policy toward paid humanitarian ads on behalf of Israelis, compared to Palestinians.
In addition, screenshots taken from TikTok’s internal employee chat platform called Lark, show Trust and Safety officers celebrating Hamas atrocities and Houthi attacks.