A company spokesman confirmed that Facebook and Instagram owner Meta Platforms briefly limited hashtags linked to civilian deaths in Bucha, outside Kyiv in northern Ukraine.

Meta Spokesman Andy Stone said automated systems that scan for violent imagery on Facebook and Instagram were responsible for blocking hashtags, including#bucha and#buchamassacre. Stone tweeted:

This 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.

Facebook and Instagram allow the posting of graphic and violent content when shared to raise awareness of possible human rights abuses, but are delete if the content is explicit or glorifies suffering.