Facebook takes down accounts to combat covert Saudi political campaign

Facebook removed from its platform more than 350 accounts with over 1.4 million followers that had activities linked to the Saudi government. Facebook led investigations that were able to confirm that individuals behind these accounts were associated with the Saudi Arabia government. The platform often takes down profiles for inauthentic behavior, but it rarely announces directly involvement with governments. However, Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of cybersecurity, believes that Facebook pages linked with governments “is significant and people should be aware”.The Saudi campaign ran ads targeting countries in the Middle East and North Africa pretending they were local ads. The ads had political news, including the success of the Saudi army during the conflict in Yemen. Facebook has been under pressure to be held liable for illegal political campaign and influence since the last American presidential elections.