Facebook just banned Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov in compliance with U.S. sanctions
Facebook obeys U.S. sanctions. This rule was made abundantly clear after a Russian internet watchdog demanded an explanation for why Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's Facebook and Instagram accounts had been blocked.
The controversial leader said his accounts were blocked without an explanation on Saturday, according to The Guardian. The decision from Facebook, which owns Instagram, came after the U.S. imposed travel and financial sanctions against Kadyrov last week.
“We became aware and have now confirmed that the accounts appear to be maintained by or on behalf of parties who appear on the U.S. Specially Designated Nationals List and thus, subject to U.S. trade sanctions. For this reason, Facebook has a legal obligation to disable these accounts," a Facebook spokesperson wrote in an email to Mashable.
Facebook must comply with U.S. sanctions administered and enforced by the U.S. Department of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control and the U.S. Department of State.
This is "nothing new," according to the spokesperson, who declined to name other instances of this occurring.
Last week's sanctions on Kadryrov were a part of the Trump administration's enforcement of the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act. On Dec. 21, the U.S. government listed 51 targets viewable in this page on the U.S. Department of Treasury.
In response to his Facebook accounts shutting down, Kadyrov registered an account with Mylistory, Chechnya’s own social network. “Dear friends, I have created my personal account kadyrov_95 in Mylistory. From now on I will post all important news and photos there,” he said on his Telegram channel, according to Russia Today.
Topics Facebook Social Media Politics
Kerry Flynn is a business reporter for Mashable covering the tech industry. She previously reported on social media companies, mobile apps and startups for International Business Times. She has also written for The Huffington Post, Forbes and Money magazine. Kerry studied environmental science and economics at Harvard College, where she led The Harvard Crimson's metro news and design teams and played mellophone in the Band. When not listening to startup pitches, she runs half-marathons, plays with puppies and pretends to like craft beer.
