The social media giant says the company posed as local news organizations to spread fake news about politicians.

R13-million worth of Facebook and Instagram advertisements were posted by the Israeli Archimedes Group targeting Nigeria, Senegal, Togo, Angola, Niger and Tunisia.

The group, which has more than three-million followers,  was also active in Southeast Asia and Latin America.

According to Facebook it was seeking to influence the outcome of elections.

The company has not responded to requests for comment on assertions that that it has been involved in fake flag operations of the kind that Facebook has pledged to protect consumers against 

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The United States, citing protection of free speech, has opted out of the initiative championed by New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and French President Emmanuel Macron.

Facebook, Google, Twitter, Microsoft and Amazon agreed at a Paris summit to a nine point plan to implement the Christchurch Call initiative which follows the fatal shooting in March of 51worshippers at two mosques in that city by a white extremist. 

New Zealand premier Jacinda Ardern co-hosted the Paris summit with France’s President Emmanuel Macron who is driving the Tech For Good programme designed , he says, to stop  the internet being used by terrorists for their hateful purposes.

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This is the second time in a year there’s been suspicious activity on the social media of the Kenyan leader who is the most followed head of government in Africa.

Chief of Staff Nzioka Waita says there has been unauthorized access to the Twitter and Facebook accounts of Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta.

These have been taken down to allow the necessary remedial action to be taken.

Waita says Kenyatta’s action against corruption is evidently making an impact, although he did not elaborate.

Last year sharp-eyed surfers discovered Kenyatta had unfriended his Deputy President William Ruto.

The Presidency in Nairobi put this down to an error. 

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Washington’s expressed its concern at the treatment of Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group.

The Oromo people, who make up 35 percent of Ethiopia’s 100- million population, began protesting three years ago against the expansion of the capital Addis Ababa into their territory.

That’s become a rolling campaign against exclusion and subordination and human rights abuses by the authorities.

In this latest round of protests, government ’s blocked access to Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms and launched a  military crackdown in the Oromia region.

These excessive measures fly in the face of Ethiopia’s economic development as it breaks out of its mould of famine and natural disaster.

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They include MTN which the largest service provider in Cameroon.

None of the internet providers is prepared to speak about the action taken in 20 percent of Cameroon.

A condition of their being granted licenses in many African countries is that they obey government instructions to cut any services.

Last year no fewer than 11 African governments ordered internet companies to cut off services.

More than a fortnight ago, Cameroon ordered companies to cut services to parts of the country where there have been protests against the French-language dominated government’s marginalisation of people from Anglophone regions.

The government wants to stop protestors using WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter to spread word of their campaigns.

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