(Photo : Photo credit should read EDUARDO SOTERAS/AFP via Getty Images)
Ethiopia's Press Secretary Billene Seyoum speaks during a joint press conference with spokesperson of the Primer Minister of Ethiopia, in Addis Ababa, on June 23, 2019.
Billene Seyoum, the spokesperson of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, condemns Facebook's decision to remove the leader's controversial post.
Earlier this week, Ahmed made headlines after posting a cryptic message on social media, saying that he and his administration would bury the enemy with their blood and bones.
Ethiopian PM's spokesperson comes to his defense
Shortly after, Facebook decided to delete Ahmed's post because it reportedly violated the company's policies against inciting and supporting violence. However, Seyoum claimed that Ahmed's statement shouldn't be taken literally.
"The prime minister calling upon the Ethiopian people to defend their city, to defend their communities, to defend their country is part of the government's constitutional responsibility to ward off any attacks," Seyoum told CNN.
Seyoum added that the Ethiopian prime minister is not asking his supporters to attack their counterparts. However, Facebook stood by its decision to delete Ahmed's post by saying that they get rid of posts that violate their community standards regardless of who shared them, according to India Today.
Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed has been targeting TPLF
This is not the first time that Ahmed has seemingly incited violence via a post on Facebook. Days earlier, he also encouraged his supporters to march with any weapon and resources that they could use to defend themselves from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).
According to reports, Ahmed has been at odds with the TPLF for months. Last year, the prime minister accused TPLF of attacking a federal army base.
A spokesperson for the group, Getachew Reda, clarified that they are not after power or territory. But they have vowed to fight Ahmed and his military forces because they have been killing members of the TPLF.
Twitter suspends trends feature in Ethiopia
Earlier this month, Twitter also announced that they would temporarily suspend the company's Trends feature amid the ongoing conflict in Ethiopia.
In a statement, Twitter said that they are monitoring the situation in the country and the conversations regarding the conflict on the platform. The social media platform also stressed that inciting violence or dehumanizing people are not allowed on Twitter.
Odanga Madung, a fellow at the Mozilla Foundation, said that Twitter may have just implicated themselves. After all, removing their Trends feature confirms that the company is aware that their platform is used to incite harm and violence, according to Quartz Africa
Donald Trump suspended from Facebook, banned from Twitter
However, it is important to note that only Ahmed's post on Facebook and the conversations pertaining to the conflict on Twitter have been removed. His official accounts on both platforms are still operational.
Ahmed isn't the only world leader who has a strained relationship with Facebook and Twitter. Earlier this year, the social media platforms decided to suspend or ban Donald Trump from their site after he was also accused of inciting violence during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
The ex-POTUS has been suspended from Facebook and Instagram for two years. However, there are several conditions before his accounts can get reinstated, according to Meta.
On the contrary, Trump was banned from Twitter. And it's unclear if he will ever be permitted to use the platform again.
Related Article: Donald Trump Seeks Federal Judge's Help To Have His Twitter Account Restored; Ex-POTUS Banned From Platform Following US Capitol Riot
