YouTube deletes videos from Palestinian human rights groups citing US sanctions

The Intercept revealed on Wednesday that YouTube permanently deleted all the videos of prominent Palestinian human rights groups’ accounts: Al-Haq, Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR).

The move came in response to a U.S. government campaign to suppress accountability for Israeli war crimes against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.

These videos were removed in early October by wiping the accounts that posted them from its website, along with their channels’ archives. Moreover, YouTube deleted hundreds of videos, including investigations into the killing of Palestinian civilians, home demolitions, and the murder of senior Al-Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh.

Google-owned YouTube took action against three groups following a review initiated by U.S. State Department sanctions. Company spokesperson Boot Bullwinkle confirmed to The Intercept that the platform “enforces restrictions on entities under US sanctions,” stating, “Google is committed to compliance with applicable sanctions and trade compliance laws.”

The Trump administration imposed sanctions in September, citing the organizations’ cooperation with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in its war crimes investigations. These investigations target Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former so-called Security Minister Yoav Gallant.

Human rights advocates reprimanded the video removals as an attempt to erase evidence of Israeli monstrosities and silence Palestinian civil society online.

Furthermore, Documentary filmmaker Robert Inlakesh also confirmed on X (formerly Twitter) that YouTube deleted the coverage of Israeli soldiers shooting civilians, including children targeted on a live stream, along with the entire account.