A coalition of NGOs and digital‑rights groups condemns Meta’s recent geo‑blocking of Facebook and Instagram pages belonging to independent activists and researchers in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, calling the moves arbitrary, discriminatory, and contrary to international human‑rights standards.
Meta’s latest geo‑blocking actions
Since 30 April 2026 Meta has made the Facebook pages of Saudi‑based NGOs ALQST for Human Rights and Democratic Diwan, as well as the personal accounts of researcher Abdullah Alaoudh and defender Yahya Assiri, unavailable to users in Saudi Arabia. A similar restriction was applied in the UAE to an academic profile. Meta’s internal notice cites a “local legal requirement” – specifically the cyber‑crime statutes of the two countries – as the basis for the block.
The companies behind the block are not new to the region. Meta’s own transparency reports list more than 100 Facebook pages and Instagram accounts that have been restricted since March 2026, a figure that mirrors earlier patterns on X (formerly Twitter), where Saudi authorities have also asked for geo‑blocking of activist accounts. Unlike X, which has so far refused the latest Saudi request, Meta complied.
Why the restriction matters
The affected accounts are not commercial pages; they belong to organizations that monitor human‑rights abuses, publish analysis of regional conflicts, and provide legal assistance to detainees. By making these pages invisible to local audiences, Meta effectively narrows the information environment that citizens of Saudi Arabia and the UAE can access. In a region where cyber‑crime and counter‑terrorism laws have been used to imprison peaceful critics, the removal of these voices amplifies state‑led censorship.
The timing is also significant. After the U.S.–Israel strikes on Iran on 28 February 2026, Gulf governments intensified control over news about the conflict. Blocking accounts that report on “regional geopolitical conflicts and security developments” aligns with a broader effort to shape public perception of the war.
Meta’s due‑diligence claim under scrutiny
Meta states that it conducts a human‑rights impact assessment before complying with government requests. The coalition of signatories – including Access Now, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the Gulf Centre for Human Rights – demands concrete answers:
- What did the assessment entail? Which team performed it, and what criteria were applied?
- How did the company reconcile the request with its own human‑rights policy, which pledges to resist censorship demands?
- Were regional offices involved in the decision‑making process?
The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights require companies to evaluate whether a government request is consistent with international standards and to be transparent about the outcome. Meta’s current notifications provide only a generic reference to “local laws” without disclosing the legal text or the specific content that allegedly violated it.
The broader context of digital repression
Saudi Arabia and the UAE have a long history of blocking websites and social‑media accounts that challenge official narratives. ALQST’s own website has been inaccessible in Saudi Arabia since 2015, and the Gulf Centre for Human Rights has faced similar blocks in both countries. The recent wave of account restrictions adds a new layer to this systematic suppression, turning a global platform into an extension of state censorship.
Calls to action
The undersigned organizations request that Meta:
- Publish the full legal requests received from Saudi and UAE authorities, together with the human‑rights assessments that were supposedly conducted.
- Restore full access to all affected accounts without delay.
- Provide affected users with detailed explanations of which content triggered the block and the exact legal provision cited.
- Clarify the role, if any, of Meta’s Gulf‑region offices in processing these requests.
Signatories
Access Now, ALQST for Human Rights, American Committee for Middle East Rights (ACMER), DAWN, De|Center Digital Action, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR), HuMENA for Human Rights and Civic Engagement, MENA Rights Group, Skyline International for Human Rights (SIHR), SMEX.
The coalition’s statement underscores a growing tension between global tech platforms and authoritarian regimes. While Meta’s compliance may keep it on the right side of local law, it raises a fundamental question about the responsibilities of platforms that host public discourse: should adherence to restrictive national statutes override a commitment to universal freedom of expression?
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