Facebook bans all Myanmar military-linked accounts

Social Media giant Facebook said on Thursday that it has barred accounts tied to Myanmar's military as well as military-controlled media accounts from using its platforms in the wake of the army s seizure of power on Feb 1.

Facebook said in a statement that it was treating the post-coup situation in Myanmar as an  emergency_ explaining that the ban was precipitated by events since the coup_ including  deadly violence .

Facebook has already banned several military-linked accounts since the coup_ including army-controlled Myawaddy TV and state television broadcaster MRTV.

The bans are also being applied on Instagram_ which is owned by Facebook.

Facebook and other social media platforms came under enormous criticism in 2017 when right groups said they failed to act enough to stop hate speech against Myanmar s Muslim Rohingya minority.

The army launched a brutal counterinsurgency operation that year that drove more than 700_000 Rohingya to to seek safety in neighboring Bangladesh_ where they remain in refugee camps.

Myanmar security forces burned down villages_ killed civilians and engaged in mass rape in their campaign_ which the World Court is investigating as a crime of genocide.

Facebook in 2018 banned the accounts of several top Myanmar military leaders_ including Senior General Min Aung Hlaing_ who led this month s coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party. The general heads the junta that now acts as the government.

The junta has tried to block Facebook and other social media platforms_ but its efforts have proven ineffective. For more than a week it has also turned off access to the Internet nightly from 1am.