Meta will block accounts of Russian propagandists.

Meta, which owns the social networks Facebook and Instagram, has decided to block the accounts of the Russian propaganda television company Russia Today and other state Russian media. The reason for this decision is the use of deceptive tactics by Russia Today and other state Russian media to conduct covert influence operations on the Internet. This ban is a sharp escalation of Meta's actions against Russian state media, which were previously limited to blocking ads and reducing the reach of their posts. The blocking will be implemented in the coming days on the Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads platforms.

This decision by Meta was made after the United States accused two employees of Russia Today of money laundering, who were involved in hiring an American company to create online content to influence the 2024 elections. In addition, the Russian television company Russia Today, as well as "TV-Novosti" and "Eurasia," were also subjected to American sanctions. Propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov was also restricted by these sanctions.

In Latvia, the Vidzeme District Court sentenced activist Elena Kreyle to a real prison term of one year for justifying genocide, crimes against humanity, peace, and war crimes. In addition, the FBI conducted a search of a countryside estate belonging to the Russian-American pro-Putin political scientist and host of "Channel One," Dmitry Simes, and his wife.