Social media giants ‘too afraid’ to stifle Islamist extremist content

SOCIAL media firms are failing to crack down on “hateful” Islamist extremist content because they fear they will be accused of breaching human rights laws, a report has suggested.

Sara Khan, the Government’s counter-extremism commissioner, found that social media firms and other bodies are taking tougher action against far-right groups than other extremists such as Islamists.

Her 18-month investigation claims Islamist groups have been “particularly good” at “subverting” the human rights agenda to get their views across.

At the same time, human rights groups have turned a blind eye to protecting victims of Islamist extremism by instead focusing on the impact of anti-terror measures on civil liberties.

“For too long, human rights organisations have remained silent whilst the human rights of some groups are trampled on by extremists,” Ms Khan said. “Islamists have been particularly good at subverting this agenda, but the Far Right are now adopting this approach through their championing of free speech. Championing human rights must be universal.”

The report said as a result, social media platforms – identified by the report

‘Far-right groups are tackled more robustly than other forms of hateful extremists, like Islamists’

as the main source of much extremist material – and other organisations have struggled to be “consistent”.

“Far-right groups and individuals are tackled more robustly than other forms of hateful extremists, like Islamists,” the report said.

“We recommend that they improve how they apply the law and their own terms and conditions to take down the most hateful and violent content on their platforms.”

The study also criticises Cage, a group that describes itself as “an independent organisation working to empower communities impacted by the war on terror” for having sympathy with “Salafi-jihadi ideologues”.

“It is our view that when Cage’s activism, beliefs and behaviours are examined closely, their claims to be standing up for the rule of law are exposed as a cover to legitimise their activism,” the report states.

Cage said the attacks on the organisation were “unfounded”.

As disclosed in The Daily Telegraph yesterday, the report also warns that the drive to tackle extremism is failing because the government’s response is “inadequate” and “unfocused”.

It said the country needs to agree on a definition of non-terror related extremism in order to stamp it out online.