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‘Letter to America’: TikTok breaks silence on viral Osama bin Laden videos

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  • TikTok to prohibit videos promoting OBL’s ‘Letter to America’.
  • US lawmakers demand ban on Chinese app.
  • The Guardian removes article from website.

TikTok will prohibit content that promotes Osama bin Laden’s 2002 letter detailing the former al Qaeda leader’s justifications for attacks against Americans, the short-form video app said on Thursday.

Discussions of the 20-year-old letter have spread on the platform this week in the context of debate over the Israel-Hamas war, with some users in the West praising its contents.

The letter, which was written after al Qaeda’s attack on the United States that killed nearly 3,000 people, criticised US support for Israel, accused Americans of financing “oppression” of Palestinians, and contained antisemitic comments.

Bin Laden was killed in 2011 in Pakistan by a US military special operations unit.

“Content promoting this letter clearly violates our rules on supporting any form of terrorism,” TikTok said in a statement, adding that reports that it was “trending” on the platform were inaccurate.

A search for “Letter to America” on TikTok surfaced no results on Thursday, with a notice that said the phrase may be associated with “content that violates our guidelines.”

Some US lawmakers have called for a ban of the Chinese-owned app and had renewed their criticisms before Thursday’s announcement.

Democratic Representative Josh Gottheimer said on Wednesday on X, formerly Twitter, that TikTok was “pushing pro-terrorist propaganda to influence Americans.”

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said in a statement on Thursday: “There is never a justification for spreading the repugnant, evil, and antisemitic lies that the leader of al Qaeda issued just after committing the worst terrorist attack in American history.”

On Wednesday, The Guardian removed the full text of bin Laden’s letter, which it had published in 2002. The news outlet said on its website that the letter was being shared on social media without full context, and that it would instead direct readers to the news article that originally reported on the letter.

TikTok said previously its recommendation algorithm does not push certain content to users, and that the company has removed hundreds of thousands of videos since Oct. 7 for violating policies against misinformation and promotion of violence.

It is difficult to gain a full understanding of how prevalent certain content is on TikTok, partly because external researchers have limited access to its data, said Renee DiResta, a research manager at Stanford Internet Observatory. 

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Pakistan’s first multi-mission satellite has started operational.

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The inaugural multi-mission satellite of Pakistan, PAKSAT MM1, has been successfully operationalized with the assistance of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC).

The operationalization of the satellite represents a significant milestone in the nation’s space and digital growth framework.

The success of PAKSAT-MM1 will revolutionize Pakistan’s communication infrastructure, benefiting multiple IT sectors.

The satellite will deliver services including television broadcasting, mobile telecommunications, community internet access, and tele-education to enhance local enterprises.

This satellite will enhance internet coverage in remote regions, advancing the government’s objective of Digital Pakistan.

Pakistan has ascended 14 positions in the United Nations E-Governance Development Index. The country currently ranks 136th overall, an improvement from 150th in 2022.

Pakistan’s historic lunar mission (ICUBE-Q) was launched on May 3 aboard China’s Chang’E6 from Hainan, China.

The iCube-Qamar satellite project is Pakistan’s inaugural lunar exploration initiative, constituting a key achievement in the nation’s space endeavors.

The satellite iCube-Q was conceived and created by the Institute of Space Technology (IST) in partnership with Shanghai University SJTU of China and Pakistan’s national space agency SUPARCO.

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In Pakistan, TikTok deleted over 30 million videos due to them breaking community norms.

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In order to further explain the platform’s proactive approach to content management in Pakistan, TikTok has issued its Q2 2024 Community Guidelines Enforcement Report. The content and accounts that were terminated for breaking the platform’s community guidelines are transparently disclosed in this quarterly report.

As the platform continues to bolster its content moderation procedures to protect its varied community, the study indicates that over 30,709,744 videos were removed from TikTok in Pakistan during the most recent reporting period. Important discoveries reveal that 97% of these films were taken down in less than a day, and 99.5% of these movies were proactively removed before people reported them. These numbers demonstrate TikTok’s dedication to preventing harmful content from being posted and guaranteeing a safer platform for its Pakistani user base.

On TikTok, millions of videos are uploaded daily by over a billion users, and the platform is always improving and giving priority to automatic moderation technology. In Q2 2024, more than 178,827,465 videos were deleted from the platform. 144,430,133 of these were eliminated automatically, demonstrating the platform’s creative application of its detection technologies to instantly delete hazardous content.

With the help of this technological breakthrough, TikTok is able to expand its moderation efforts and keep its expanding worldwide community safe. At 98.2%, TikTok’s proactive detection rate makes it more effective than ever to remove hazardous content before users see it. Reiterating the precision and efficacy of TikTok’s content control algorithms, the data also shows a 50% decrease in the quantity of restored videos.

In order to provide a safe environment for its varied user base in Pakistan and around the world, TikTok is investing in state-of-the-art moderation technology while maintaining a top priority in transparency and platform safety.

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Huawei presents an advanced AI-capable cloud solution at GITEX 2024.

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Huawei Cloud is showcasing its dedication to intelligent enhancements and cloud breakthroughs at GITEX 2024 in Dubai, emphasizing AI-driven, industry-specific solutions for areas such as government, banking, media, and e-commerce.

GITEX Global 2024 will take place at the Dubai World Trade Centre from October 14 to 18. Attend Huawei’s exhibits situated in B10 and B20 of Hall 22.

Alan Qi, President of Huawei Cloud Middle East and Central Asia, stated, “Huawei Cloud introduces global digital transformation best practices to the region through AI-native cloud services, including databases, big data, data governance, software development, and AI.” We collaborate with industry experts to develop solutions for government, electricity, banking, media, e-commerce, and retail, facilitating digital and intelligent transformation. Moreover, we link local industries with global corporations to promote innovation via peer exchanges and effective methods.

The company’s “Everything-as-a-Service” strategy matches with its objective of providing efficient, cloud-based solutions across several industries.

Huawei Cloud provides an Everything-as-a-Service strategy that encompasses fully digital, cloud-based, and AI-driven services, such as Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Technology-as-a-Service, and Expertise-as-a-Service.

During GITEX 2024, Huawei Cloud introduced solutions for five primary sectors: digital government, media and entertainment, Web3, e-commerce and retail, and telecoms.

The company unveiled advancements such as the enhanced Pangu Models 5.0 and the cloud-native development platform CodeArts, aimed at augmenting AI capabilities and optimizing software development efficiency.

Huawei will provide ICT training to 300,000 young individuals in Pakistan.

Moreover, Huawei Cloud will conduct the Huawei Cloud Summit UAE 2024 at the Conrad Hotel in Dubai on October 15.

The event, themed “Leap to Intelligence with a Better Cloud,” will include product releases, collaborative solution launches with ecosystem partners, and announcements regarding talent development initiatives.

The Huawei Cloud Partner and Ecosystem Forum is scheduled for October 16 to explore policies and strategies for partner and ecosystem sales, products, operations, and marketing.

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