Instagram Restricts Kanye West’s Account Following Backlash Over Alleged Antisemitic Post, West Responds With Disturbing Tweets

Update:

Kanye West has responded to the Instagram restriction with two antisemtic tweets, writing, “I’m a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I’m going death [sic] con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE The funny thing is I actually can’t be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew also You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda,” following it with “Who you think created cancel culture?”

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Previously:

Instagram has placed a restriction on Kanye “Ye” West’s account after deleting content for a violation of the platform’s policies.

A Meta spokesperson confirmed the decision to Variety, sharing that temporary restrictions on posting, commenting and messaging are standard practice for accounts that regularly violate the social media platform’s policies. The company did not indicate which specific posts were the cause behind the restriction.

West, who uses the handle @kanyewest on the platform, recently shared a now-deleted post featuring a screenshot of a message, allegedly sent to rapper Diddy, that had been criticized as antisemitic by Jewish advocacy groups like the American Jewish Committee.

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Representatives for West were not immediately available for comment.

In the hours following his restriction on Instagram, West took to Twitter for the first moment in some time, seemingly calling out Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg for his restriction from the platform.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who has been engaged in a legal process regarding a potential purchase of Twitter, responded by welcoming West back to the social media platform.

The rapper also shared what seems to be a teaser for a 2024 political campaign, a prospect that he has flirted with in the past.

This does not mark the first time that West has faced restrictions on Instagram. In March, the rapper was suspended from the platform for 24 hours. Content from West’s account was also deleted in that incident for violations of policies for hate speech, bullying and harassment.

West also faced controversy earlier this week after wearing a shirt reading “White Lives Matter” during his surprise Yeezy Season 9 fashion show in Paris. The rapper also appeared for an interview on Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight” on Thursday evening to discuss the decision.

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