Israel’s aggression against Palestine is crazy, US asks for answers Google Tech – 15 hours ago

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – United States (US) Senator Michael Bennet asked for answers from technology giants regarding disinformation and false news spreading on platforms such as Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp), Google and TikTok.

The disinformation in question is related to the conflict between the Palestinian Hamas group and Israel in Gaza. The war that broke out in the Middle East on October 7 2023 is still ongoing and is currently getting worse.


“Misleading content has skyrocketed on various social media since the conflict began. Sometimes this incorrect content gets millions of views,” said Bennet, who is a senator from the Democratic Party, in a letter addressed to the bosses of technology giants.

The inaccurate content in question is spread in several formats. Not only photos and videos, but also fake document files, even video game footage.

“In some cases, your platform’s algorithm [Google, Facebook, TikTok dkk] has strengthened the spread of fake content. “This contributes to the danger of continued rebellion,” he said, quoted from ReutersWednesday (18/10/2023).

Previously, European Commissioner for the internal market Thierry Breton also issued a stern warning to the bosses of technology giants.

He gave X/Twitter, Facebook and TikTok 1 x 24 hours to clean up various content that fueled the conflict between Hamas and Israel. This strict warning is in accordance with the Digital Services Act (DSA) regulations that apply in Europe.

Under DSA regulations, digital services operating in Europe are required to remove fake content. If violated, companies could be subject to a fine of 6% of their total annual revenue in Europe.

Facebook, Twitter/X, and TikTok immediately responded to Breton’s warning. They say they have implemented specific methods to remove and prevent the spread of fake content.

The latest update from the ongoing conflict, hundreds of people were reported killed in a large explosion at a busy hospital in Gaza City. The incident was the largest death toll in the blockaded region in five wars between Hamas and Israel since the militants took over the territory in 2007.

Gaza’s Health Ministry, which is run by Hamas, said at least 500 people were killed on Tuesday evening in Israeli airstrikes on al-Ahli al-Arabi, also known as the Baptist hospital.

A spokesman for Gaza’s civil defense put the death toll at around 300 people.

The bloodshed at the hospital came 11 days after a new war between Israel and Palestinian militant groups continued to escalate ahead of Joe Biden’s visit to the region, complicating US efforts to stop the widening conflict in the Middle East.

The Israeli military reportedly said a preliminary investigation showed that the explosion was caused by a failed Hamas rocket launch, before saying that it was the result of a Palestinian Islamic Jihad rocket attack. Islamic Jihad denies Israel’s accusations, and the scale of the explosion appears to be beyond the militant group’s capabilities.

Footage broadcast from the ground by Al Jazeera showed huge flames engulfing the multi-storey building, with bodies, bloodstains and debris strewn everywhere.

The hospital belonging to the Anglican church was reportedly attacked without prior warning. Previously, the hospital was hit by rockets on Saturday in an attack that injured four medical staff.

The hospital was attacked at around 19.30 local time. The place is full of people injured in Israeli attacks, as well as civilians seeking shelter, believing hospitals to be safer than their homes after relentless Israeli attacks that have killed more than 3,000 people.

“We were carrying out an operation in the hospital, there was a strong explosion, and the ceiling of the operating room collapsed. This was a massacre,” said doctor Ghassan Abu Sittah, quoted by The Guardian.

“Nothing can justify a shocking attack on a hospital and the many patients and health workers and people who sought refuge there. Hospitals were not the targets. This bloodshed must stop. Enough is enough.”

More than 300 victims were taken by ambulance and private cars to Gaza City’s main hospital, al-Shifa, which was already overwhelmed with injuries from other attacks. Injured people lay on the floor covered in blood, screaming in pain.

“We fit five beds into one small room. We need equipment, we need medicine, we need beds, we need anesthesia, we need everything,” al-Shifa’s director, Mohammed Abu Selmia, told the Associated Press.

“I think the medical sector in Gaza will collapse in a few hours.”

Doctor Ziad Shehadah told Al Jazeera what happened was very bad because the people were all civilians.

“People left their homes thinking they were more dangerous and they moved to our schools and hospitals to be safe. And within a minute, they were all killed in the hospitals,” he said.

[Gambas:Video CNBC]

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