Meta Platforms has restored former US President Donald Trump’s Facebook page following a two-year suspension after the deadly Capitol Hill riot on January 6, 2021.
Meta announced last month that it would reinstate Trump‘s Facebook and Instagram accounts. His Instagram page was not immediately accessible on Thursday.
Donald Trump announced in November he will make another run for the White House in 2024. It was speculated that the restoration of his accounts could provide a boost to Trump, who has 34 million followers on Facebook and other platforms that are key vehicles for political outreach and fundraising.
Twitter‘s new CEO Elon Musk also reinstated Trump’s account in November, though Trump has yet to post there.
In a blog post in January, Meta said that it doesn’t want to get in the way of open, public and democratic debate on the social media platforms, especially when it comes to elections in democratic societies like the United States.
Trump’s account was suspended on Facebook and Instagram by Meta for indefinite time “following his praise for people engaged in violence at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.” The decision was referred to the Oversight Board, which “criticised the open-ended nature of the suspension and the lack of clear criteria for when and whether suspended accounts will be restored.”
However, Trump’s restored accounts will also be subject to Meta’s Community Standards. The former US President also faces penalties for repeat offenses. In the future event if Trump’s posts will be found violating content, the content will be removed and he will be suspended for between one month and two years, depending on the severity of the violation.
At the time of writing, Trump’s account was reinstated on Instagram as well, where he has 23.4 million followers.
