Page 30 - bon-dia-aruba-20210525

A30 world news
Diamars 25 mei 2021

Gaza-based journalists in Hamas chat blocked from WhatsApp

ist organization by Israel and journalists if any were im- against efforts to evict Pales- is erased, as if you are join-
the United States, where pacted,” the company said. tinians from their homes in ing a new group or starting
WhatsApp owner Facebook east Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah a new conversation,” he said.
is headquartered. Al Jazeera said that when neighborhood. It prompted “I have lost information, im-
it sought information re- an open letter signed by 30 ages, numbers, messages and
It’s unclear if the journalists garding its four journalists organizations demanding to communications.”
were targeted because they’d in Gaza impacted by the know why the posts had been
been following that group’s blockage, they were told by removed. Al Jazeera said its journalists
announcements on What- Facebook that the company in Gaza had their WhatsApp
sApp. had blocked the numbers The New York Times also re- accounts blocked by the host
of groups based out of Gaza ported that some 100 What- without prior notification.
(AP) — A few hours after Hamas runs Gaza’s Health and consequently the cell sApp groups were used by
the latest cease-fire took Ministry, which has a What- phone numbers of Al Jazeera Jewish extremists in Israel for “Al Jazeera would like to
effect in the Gaza Strip, sApp group followed by journalists were part of the the purpose of committing strongly emphasize that its
a number of Palestinian more than 80 people, many groups they had blocked. violence against Palestinian journalists will continue
journalists in the coastal of them journalists. That citizens of Israel. to use their WhatsApp ac-
enclave found they were group, for example, has not Among those affected by the counts and other applications
blocked from accessing been blocked. WhatsApp blockage are two WhatsApp said it does not for newsgathering purposes
WhatsApp messenger — a Agence France-Presse jour- have access to the contents of and personal communica-
crucial tool used to com- Hassan Slaieh, a free- nalists. The Paris-based in- people’s personal chats, but tion,” the news network told
municate with sources, lance journalist in Gaza ternational news service told that they ban accounts when the AP. “At no time, have Al
editors and the world be- whose WhatsApp account is the AP it is working with information is reported they Jazeera journalists used their
yond the blockaded strip. blocked, said he thinks his WhatsApp to understand believe indicates a user may accounts for any means other
account might have been what the problem is and to be involved in causing im- than for personal or profes-
The Associated Press reached targeted because he was on a restore their accounts. minent harm. The company sional use.”
out to 17 journalists in Gaza group called Hamas Media. said it also responds to “valid
who confirmed their What- The 11-day war caused wide- legal requests from law en- The Qatar-based news net-
sapp accounts had been “This has affected my work spread destruction across forcement for the limited in- work’s office in Gaza was de-
blocked since Friday. By and my income because I lost Gaza with 248 Palestinians, formation available to us.” stroyed during the war by Is-
midday Monday, only four conversations with sources including 66 children and 39 raeli airstrikes that took down
journalists — working for Al and people,” Slaieh said. women, killed in the fighting. The Arab Center for the Ad- the high-rise residential
Jazeera — confirmed their Israel says 12 people in Israel, vancement of Social Media, and office tower, which also
accounts had been restored. Al Jazeera’s chief corre- including two children, also or 7amleh, said in a report housed The Associated Press
spondent in Gaza, Wael al- died. published this month that offices. Press freedom groups
The incident marks the latest Dahdouh, said his access Facebook accepted 81% of accused the military, which
puzzling move concerning to WhatsApp was blocked It’s not the first time jour- requests made by Israel’s Cy- claimed the building housed
WhatsApp’s owner Facebook around dawn on Friday be- nalists have been suddenly ber Unit to remove Palestin- Hamas military intelligence,
Inc. that’s left Palestinian us- fore it was reinstated Mon- barred from WhatsApp. In ian content last year. It found of trying to censor coverage
ers or their allies bewildered day. He said journalists sub- 2019, a number of journalists that in 2020, Twitter sus- of Israel’s offensive. The Is-
as to why they’ve been tar- scribe to Hamas groups only in Gaza had their accounts pended dozens of accounts raeli military telephoned a
geted by the company, or if to get information needed to blocked without explanation. of Palestinian users based on warning, giving occupants
indeed they’d been singled do journalistic work. The accounts of those work- information from the Israeli of the building one hour to
out for censorship at all. ing with international media Ministry of Strategic Affairs. evacuate.
A WhatsApp spokesperson organizations were restored
Twelve of the 17 journalists said the company bans ac- after contacting the company. Al-Dahdouh, the Al Jazeera Sada Social, a West Bank-
contacted by the AP said they counts to comply with its correspondent, said although based center tracking alleged
had been part of a WhatsApp policies “to prevent harm as Facebook and its photo and his account was restored, his violations against Palestinian
group that disseminates in- well as applicable law.” The video-sharing platform In- past history of chats and mes- content on social media, said
formation related to Hamas company said it has been in stagram were criticized this sages was erased. it was collecting informa-
military operations. Hamas, touch with media outlets month for removing posts tion on the number of Gaza-
which rules over the Gaza over the last week about its and deleting accounts by us- “The groups and conversa- based journalists impacted by
Strip, is viewed as a terror- practices. “We will reinstate ers posting about protests tions were back, but content the latest WhatsApp decision.

Former banker Guillermo Lasso becomes president in Ecuador

(AP) — Former bank- the United States, China and figure who is likely to seek a corruption scandal. Brazilian President Jair Bol-
er Guillermo Lasso was Russia in hopes of reaching good relations with the Inter- sonaro and the president of
sworn in as president of that goal. national Monetary Fund and His inauguration was at- Haiti, Jovenel Moise.
Ecuador on Monday, say- other global organizations, tended by dignitaries includ-
ing he will escalate efforts “It will not be a govern- though he could encounter ing Spanish King Felipe VI,
to vaccinate people to ment that only promises,″ significant opposition to his
protect them from CO- said 65-year-old Lasso, who policies in Ecuador’s con-
VID-19 and work to revive was elected in April in his gress.
an economy hit hard by third run for the presidency,
the pandemic. replacing President Lenín In the runoff election, Lasso
Moreno. defeated Andrés Arauz, a
So far, Ecuador has vacci- protégé of former President
nated just 3% of the total “As Ecuadorians, we all share Rafael Correa who governed
population of 17 million, the same destiny, it is every- Ecuador from 2007 through
and the country is struggling one’s obligation to assume 2017. Correa increased
with high unemployment the challenges that the future spending and state interven-
and debt levels. Lasso wants imposes on us, enormous tion in the economy, oversaw
his new government to vac- challenges that cannot be a new constitution and grew
cinate nine million people faced in isolation,” Lasso said. increasingly authoritarian in
in his first 100 days in office, the latter years of his presi-
and he has reached out to Some analysts have described dency. He was sentenced in
pharmaceutical companies in Lasso as a market-friendly absentia to prison last year in