Sameera Casmod | sameerac@radioislam.co.za
11 September 2023 | 08:48am SAST
2-min read

During this week’s Palestine Report with Moulana Ibrahim Moosa on Radio Islam International, the decline in foreign investment in Israel was discussed. In addition, the pro-Israeli bias on Facebook as revealed by an Al Jazeera investigation was examined, as was the announcement by settler groups to storm the old city of Al-Quds.

According to a report from the Israeli finance ministry, foreign investment in the first quarter of 2023 plummeted by a staggering 60%, Moulana Moosa said. This decline may signal a loss of confidence in the Israeli economy.

The report highlighted a reduction in the number of transactions entered into with investors in Israel, as well as a decrease in the number of investors. Additionally, the average exit transaction, involving Israeli startups being sold to international companies, dropped by approximately 80% during this period, Moulana Moosa noted. He also reported Professor Ilan Pappé’s observation that international financial corporations and the high-tech industry are now viewing Israel as an unstable and risky destination for foreign investment.

The interview also touched on the Al-Jazeera investigation for the ما خفي أعظم (Ma khafia A’etham) program- which translates to ‘the hidden is more immense’ or the ‘tip of the iceberg’- aired on Al Jazeera Arabic. The investigation laid bare the relationship between Facebook (now Meta) and the Israeli government. It was revealed that Facebook had been complying with Israeli requests to remove content deemed offensive, particularly content that Israel claimed was anti-Semitic or hateful. This compliance was largely attributed to a law passed by Israel in 2016, which penalised companies for not cooperating with such requests.

The program conducted an experiment, creating two pages—one in Arabic focusing on Palestinian content and another in Hebrew called “Ancestral Land.” They posted identical content from different perspectives on both pages. While content on the Arabic page was swiftly deleted with a warning, similar content on the Hebrew page, complete with graphic images and inflammatory text, remained untouched. This raised concerns of bias and unequal treatment.

Moulana Moosa said that during the investigation, Al Jazeera spoke to the head of the Israeli cyber unit who indicated that Meta complies with requests to delete content that the unit deems offensive.

Two days after the investigation was aired, Tamer Al-Mishal’s verified Facebook account was taken down without prior notice.

The interview also highlighted the rising tensions surrounding Masjid al-Aqsa. Settler groups announced their intent to storm the old city of Al-Quds and Masjid al-Aqsa, coinciding with the Hebrew New Year and other festivities.

Recent incidents, such as the seizure of textbooks from Palestinian students studying within Masjid al-Aqsa and the damage caused by Israeli government forces in the Bab al-Rahma prayer hall, have added to the heightened tensions. Moreover, increased summoning of Palestinian activists and banning orders further exacerbate the situation.

Listen to the Palestine Report on Sabaahul Muslim with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat: