Syrian refugee sues Facebook for failing to take down false posts on him

A Syrian refugee identified as Anas Modamani has sued Facebook for failing to take down false and incriminating posts on the social media site linking him to crimes.

According to the lawyer of the refugee whose selfie with German Chancellor Angela Merkel went viral, his client is suing the social networking site after it failed to take down a series of posts accusing him of being a “terrorist” and criminal.

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Modamani’s image has been shared on Facebook on a series of anonymous accounts, alongside posts claiming he was responsible for attacks and murder, including the Brussels Airport bombing of March 2016.

Facebook has repeatedly refused to take the posts down, saying they do not violate the company’s rules, Modamani’s lawyer said.

“Whenever something happens in the news related to refugees, his picture reappears,” Modamani’s lawyer, Chan-jo Jun, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

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