Russian President Vladimir Putin Reacts to Biden: U.S. Should Learn to Respect Russia 17.10.23/Reuters
Microsoft President Brad Smith said on Saturday that Russia was spreading a disinformation campaign online about the war in Gaza, spreading false information about what was happening. Smith, who attended an international professional forum in Paris, said: "Microsoft and other companies are fighting the same spread of lies with the help of technological tools that identify manipulated and modified content. We are getting very better at identifying the Russian campaign, for example when they tried to prevent people from getting the COVID-19 vaccine or today when we see their disinformation campaign in the Middle East."
According to Smith, the three options available to technology platforms that detect this type of disinformation are to do nothing, delete it or retag it and mark that the content has changed. "There is no consensus on the right course of action," he added.
Manipulations. Putin/Reuters
Since the beginning of the war in Gaza, Russia has not expressed support for Israeli policy. Moreover, a Hamas delegation was hosted in Russia a few days after the massacre near the Gaza Strip. At the time, the Foreign Ministry condemned the invitation of senior Hamas figures to Moscow and called on Russia to expel them from the country immediately.
The next day, the Foreign Ministry summoned Russian Ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov for a reprimand following the visit of a Hamas delegation to Moscow. Simona Halperin, deputy director general of the Eurasia Division at the Foreign Ministry, told the Russian ambassador that Israel viewed with severity the absence of an unequivocal and clear condemnation by Moscow of Hamas, and also expressed protest against Russia's conduct in UN institutions, especially Russia's veto of the resolution condemning Hamas. "Hosting senior Hamas officials in Moscow sends a message of legitimacy for terrorism against Israelis," Halperin told the Russian ambassador.
In a UN Security Council debate, Israel's ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, attacked Russia for voting against the resolution condemning Hamas. "How would Moscow react if terrorist squads wiped out entire neighborhoods in Moscow? How would Beijing react if terrorists cut off your babies' heads? I'll give you a moment to reflect on that – even though you don't need a moment – we all know exactly how you would react," Erdan said. "The Russian decision makes no mention of Israel's right to self-defense. Would Moscow or Beijing have been granted the right of self-defense if faced with a similar threat? I guess so."
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