Facebook, Instagram welcome Donald Trump back from exile

FORMER President Donald Trump is being allowed to return to the social media platforms that banned him following his supporters’ 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

His Facebook and Instagram accounts will be reinstated in the “coming weeks,” an executive for Meta, which runs the sites, said in a Wednesday statement.

The move comes after Twitter reinstated Trump under new owner Elon Musk in November, though he’s yet to tweet.

“As a general rule, we don’t want to get in the way of open, public and democratic debate on Meta’s platforms — especially in the context of elections in democratic societies like the United States,” wrote the company’s President of Global Affairs Nick Clegg.

“The public should be able to hear what their politicians are saying — the good, the bad and the ugly — so that they can make informed choices at the ballot box,” he added.

Meta suspended Trump’s accounts on Jan. 6, 2021 after hundreds of his crazed loyalists attacked police and stormed the U.S. Capitol as lawmakers met to certify the 2020 election. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said at the time that he was afraid Trump’s rhetoric would “provoke further violence.”

Meta said Wednesday it would put “new guardrails in place to deter repeat offenses” including heightened penalties for offenders like Trump, who will be suspended for up to two more years if he violates company rules. Those include a prohibition on inciting violence.

Clegg said Meta has determined the menace posed by the 45th president “has sufficiently receded”

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“That’s probably where some of the backlash is stemming from as well.” since he was de-platformed.

Dubai is part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a Middle Eastern country made up of seven regions that follow strict laws and have rules against homosexuality.

Nearby Qatar, which hosted the 2022 World Cup, has similar rules.

It was criticised for its attitude to LGBT people, its human rights record and its treatment of migrant workers.

David Beckham faced backlashmost famously from comedian Joe Lycett - for signing a big-money deal with the Qatari government to advertise the event.

“We know that any decision we make on this issue will be fiercely criticized,” Clegg noted.

It’s not clear if or when Trump — who launched his own social media platform last February — will again post on Facebook or Instagram. But he welcomed news of Meta’s decision on his Truth Social site.

“Such a thing should never again happen to a sitting President, or anybody else who is not deserving of retribution!” he stated.

Trump’s team reportedly petitioned Meta for reinstatement last week. (NYDailynews)