Instagram page of RT’s Redfish project restored without explanation days after block by Facebook & complaint to Russian watchdog

As mysteriously as it was taken down, Facebook on Monday restored the Instagram account of Redfish, RT’s Berlin-based digital media content project, which was suspended without explanation last week.

RT had earlier asked the Russian authorities to investigate the suspension as potentially violating the country’s law.

Even as it brought the page back, the Silicon Valley giant offered no particular explanation for its original decision to take down the account last week, the Redfish team wrote in its first post after the ban was lifted. The reversal also came without a comment from Facebook, which owns Instagram.

“While we are not surprised by Instagram’s censorship, we view this latest episode of suppression as part and parcel of the platform’s crackdown on media sources challenging the mainstream,” Redfish said.

The team thanked its supporters on Instagram “who pushed to get us back.” The page has over 419k followers.

Redfish will not bow to censorship.

The Instagram account was restored days after RT lodged formal complaints to Russia’s media watchdog Roskomnadzor (RKN) and the prosecutor general’s office, asking them to investigate the suspension and possibly take action against Facebook.

In April, Facebook took down the Redfish page on its primary social media platform. It was restored after pressure from journalistic groups and RT, but remains restricted in how it can reach new audiences.

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