Facebook and Instagram take down bishop stabbing videos

Facebook has taken down graphic videos capturing the stabbing of an Assyrian priest after the eSafety Commissioner stepped in to demand they be urgently removed. But not all social media companies are complying.

Facebook and Instagram have taken down violent videos capturing the stabbing of an Assyrian priest in Sydney’s southwest.

The eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant has ordered Facebook and Instagram owner Meta and X, formerly Twitter, to take down videos that captured a 16-year-old boy stabbing bishop Mar Mari Emannuel at a church in Wakeley on Monday.

“eSafety is satisfied with the steps Meta has taken in the last 24 hours to comply with the Class 1 notice issued on 16 April 2024,” a spokesman said.

“eSafety is currently assessing the extent to which X Corp. has complied with the Class 1 notice issued on 16 April 2024, and whether further regulatory action may be required.”

The spokesman flagged eSafety will continue to demand content being taken down in the aftermath of the attack as it appears.

Users are being urged to report any further posts capturing the attack to ensure they can be flagged to Meta.

Blurred footage for the 15 year old boy who stabbed the Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel during a service.at The Good Shepard Church in Sydney last night. Picture: Twitter

Premier Chris Minns has said social media companies and websites that do not immediately remove graphic images or misinformation should be subject to “tougher penalties”.

It comes as the Daily Telegraph revealed that tech giants raking in huge profits despite platforming violent extremist content that experts say is radicalising primary school children.

Online safety experts are urgently calling on the Albanese government to focus on youth radicalisation claiming there was strong evidence to show social media and tech giants were platforming extremism and allowing their content to be shown to children.

“It’s still a major concern for NSW Police and the government to have so much unsubstantiated rumour and graphic content still available on public websites and social media platforms,” Mr Minns said.

“It proves to be very difficult to foster community cohesion and harmony and calm down the community and send messages of unity in a difficult period when social media firms still continue to disseminate terrible pieces of information, untruths and rumours that circulate like wildfire through a febrile and anxious community.

“We’re going to work with the Commonwealth government to close down these pages wherever they eventuate.”

NSW Premier, Chris Minns. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Jeremy Piper

The Premier said the government had a lot of difficulty taking down graphic and content inciting violence over the last week.

“Even 48 hours after these alleged offences took place they are still available,” he said.

“I heard the Minister fir Communication speak this morning about tougher penalties, I think that would be warmly welcomed by the community.

“I know that we were struggling over the last week with particular websites and pages that are spreading lies and disinformation, so if we can prevent or stop and put social media firms on notice that there’ll be consequences if you don’t take an active management of what’s happening on your own websites, that would be good for the state.”

How Aussie teens are being radicalised online

His comments follow a disturbing audio praising a Sydney teen’s stabbing frenzy on Assyrian priest Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel and saying he “deserves to get slaughtered” was posted on Instagram.

International Islamist radicals also posted praise of the attack on X.

Peta Lowe, the former director of Countering Violent Extremism for Juvenile Justice NSW, said there are confronting parallels between the teenager who stabbed Assyrian Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel and Melbourne ISIS recruit Jake Bilardi.

Bilardi was a Melbourne teen who grew up in the suburbs with his older siblings after losing their mother to cancer.

He became radicalised by researching online material before going to Iraq to join ISIS where he was killed in a suicide bomb attack.

“This young person is not the first who is involved in a similar incident, Jake Bilardi was in a very similar situation, his family had no idea, it was all in an online environment,” she said.

“We know in Australia, it starts quite broadly on social media on Facebook, Instagram, a lot of those very popular channels.

“They can then be added to private channels like WhatsApp groups … then they go down a rabbit hole where there are sermons and propaganda,”

She said while Islamic radicals preferred WhatsApp, right wing extremists used 8Chan and 4Chan.

Counter-terrorism expert Peta Lowe. Picture: Richard Dobson

Her comments come amid growing reports of radical sermons being delivered at Sydney mosques in the aftermath of the October 7 attack in Israel and being broadcasted on YouTube.

Muslim cleric Abu Ousayd, better known as Wissam Haddad, delivered a sermon about killing Jews but police dropped their investigation into the preacher despite comments including calling on people to spit on Israel so “Jews would drown”.

Mr Ousayd has also given sermons calling for the establishment of a Muslim army to fight Western nations.

The Telegraph previously revealed that Meta-owned Instagram had refused to take down anti-Semitic and anti-gay material posted by Mr Ousayd.

Another cleric, Sheikh Ahmed Zoud told Lakemba’s As-Sunnah mosque that Jews “loved to shed blood” and raised their children on “violence, terrorism and killing”.

Ms Lowe said social media platforms had a “huge role” to play in the moderation of extremist content.

“There are the obvious issues around how do you find this content? Unless it’s flagged or use words that are flagged … many extremist groups get around that,” she said.

Jake Bilardi pictured after leaving Australia to fight with Isis.

“It’s very challenging but they do have a responsibility since they monetise so much of their content, the profit should go back to ensuring safety on their platform.

“When they turn such a huge profit off these things they have a responsibility to work as hard as they can (to take this down).”

Ms Lowe, who has just returned from Kenya, said the African nation was doing better than Australia on dealing with radicalisation.

“Kenya is taking it so seriously they’ve made it part of their child protection legislation that it is a risk of harm to expose children to violent extremist material or propaganda … If we are serious, we keep talking about it, ASIO, Police, where is the proof they are doing it? “,” she said.

Dr Andre Oboler is CEO of the Online Hate Prevention Institute.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was conducting mass when he was stabbed multiple times.

“That means all the Directorate of Children Services staff are being trained (in radicalisation prevention). Its now their core business just as being trained in neglect and child abuse is. They are really taking a whole of society approach.”

Online Hate Prevention Institute chief executive Andre Oboler said mainstream social media platforms were being used to lure people in.

“In light of the Middle East conflict, we’ve seen a shift in violent extremism. We’ve been monitoring both antisemitism and Islamophobia and I have seen a shift from general incitement like ‘Kill the Jews’ and now it’s being pushed to radical ideology so it will have symbolism of neo Nazis, symbolism of Hamas,” he said.

“It shows people are latching onto an ideology which allows them to search for more content and then find more content. Once people find a way in, it’s very easy to fall down the rabbit hole.”

Mr Oboler said he had seen posts on 4Chan glorifying Brenton Tarrant, the man responsible for the Christchurch mosque shootings.

“There is a glorification of those who have carried out violent extremism,” he said.

“I was looking at data from the Bondi Junction attack, looking on 4Chan I have a copy of a comment saying free Brenton Tarrant.”

Meta declined to comment.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil were contacted for a comment.

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