Facebook and Instagram, both under the parent company Meta Platforms, hid hashtags over the weekend related to the alleged massacre in the Ukrainian city of Bucha before unrestricting them on Monday, the New York Post reported.
The blocked tags included #RussianWarCrimes, #Bucha, and #BuchaMassacre.
New York Times journalist Ryan Mac first brought attention to the restrictions on Monday, quote-tweeting a Ukrainian journalist who demonstrated how the tags were "hidden" due to "content that may not meet Instagram's Community Guidelines."
Meta communications director Andy Stone replied to the tweet, claiming the block "happened automatically because of the graphic content people posted using these hashtags."
"When we were made aware of the issue yesterday, we acted quickly to unblock the hashtags," Stone said.
The temporary blocking of the tags comes amid reports from Ukrainian officials that a mass killing by Russian troops took place in the Kyiv suburb of Bucha before the city was re-captured by Ukrainian forces, according to Politico.
On Monday, Ukrainian Parliament member Kira Rudyk told Newsmax that she visited the site after the event and had "never seen so many bodies at once."
"Many of them were having their hands tied behind their backs. And many of them were killed as families, and some of them died alone," Rudyk claimed during an appearance on "Eric Bolling The Balance."
"I have talked to people who survived, whose children died of pneumonia because they were in the basement for 39 days. I have talked to women who were raped when their children had to watch, and their husbands were killed right there."
Russia has denied the claims by Ukrainian officials, per Reuters.
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