Iranian ayatollah removed from Facebook, Instagram over Hamas support
Meta said the ayatollah violated its Dangerous Organizations & Individuals policy
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Iranian ayatollah was banned from Meta's social media platforms this week due to rhetoric in support of terrorist group Hamas.
Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been banned from Facebook and Instagram.
"We have removed these accounts for repeatedly violating our Dangerous Organizations & Individuals policy," a Meta spokesperson told news outlet Agence France-Presse.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}IRAN MANUFACTURED THE DRONE THAT KILLED 3 US SOLDIERS IN JORDAN, US OFFICIAL SAYS
Iranian Leader Ali Khamenei attends a program at the Imam Khomeini Hosseini in Tehran, Iran. (Iranian Leader Press Office/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The cited policy regulates rhetoric in support of violent groups or terrorist organizations.
"We do not allow organizations or individuals that proclaim a violent mission or are engaged in violence to have a presence on our platforms," the policy reads. "That includes those designated as terrorists by the U.S. government."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Khamenei began voicing regular support for Hamas on social media following the October 7 attack on Israel that killed over a thousand people.
Visitors walk in front of the Meta sign at its headquarters in Menlo Park, California, United States. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Iran reportedly helped Hamas plan its attack on Israel, according to senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Just days after Hamas' surprise assault on Israel, Khamenei reportedly said during a televised speech, "We kiss the hands of those who planned the attack."
The Wall Street Journal reported in early October that Iranian security officials approved Hamas' plan to attack Israel during a recent meeting in Beirut. Hamas and Hezbollah leaders said Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has worked with Hamas since August on air, land and sea attack plans.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei meets with Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force commanders and Islamic Republic of Iran Air Defense Force officers at the Imam Khomeini Husayniyya in Tehran, Iran. ((Photo by Iranian Leader Press Office / Handout /Anadolu via Getty Images))
Iran backs multiple terrorist groups in the Middle East, including Iraq's Kata'ib Hezbollah, Yemen's Houthi rebels, Lebanon's Hezbollah and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.
Each group, which receives support from Iran through several methods, has increasingly become a threat to members of the U.S. armed forces, U.S. allies, commercial global shipping and the regions in which they operate.
Fox News Digital's Greg Norman and Kyle Morris contributed to this report.