Meta has shut down the Instagram account of Anas Al-Sharif, the slain Palestinian journalist whose page held a large archive of his reporting from Gaza, a statement from his account on X said on Friday, October 9.
The statement said the team was “deeply saddened” to find the page closed, and asked anyone able to help restore it, or to reach Meta or Instagram’s management, to get in touch through private messages. It also pointed followers to a backup account, Anas Jamal33. The statement did not say why the account was closed, and it did not mention whether Meta had given any explanation. Meta has not publicly commented on the closure so far.
Al-Sharif was an Al Jazeera correspondent from northern Gaza. His reporting covered the bombing, forced displacement, hunger and civilian deaths during Israel’s war on the territory. His Instagram page held his full body of work from that time, according to the statement.
He was killed on August 10, 2025, when an Israeli strike hit a tent used by journalists near Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Several other journalists died in the same attack. Shortly before his death, he was reporting on the intensifying bombardment of Gaza City. “The bombing does not stop,” he wrote in his last report, adding that Israeli aggression on the city had grown heavier over the previous two hours.
The closure has revived a long-running complaint against Meta. Journalists, rights groups and Palestinian advocates have criticised the company for how it handles Palestine-related content, pointing to removed posts, restricted accounts and lower visibility for pro-Palestinian material. The loss of Al-Sharif’s page has also raised fresh concern about how the digital archives of reporters killed in conflict can be preserved, and how long reporting from Gaza stays available to the public.
Gaza’s Government Media Office says 263 journalists and media workers have been killed since the war began in October 2023.
