A reflection of the US flag is seen on the sign of the TikTok app in this illustration picture taken September 19, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Florence Lo/Illustration.

i24News – TikTok told Israeli ministers they were committed to stopping antisemitism on their platform on Wednesday, according to a government press release.

A representative met with the Aliyah, Absorption and Diaspora Committee in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, after the company was absent from previous meetings held.

According to TikTok, 90 percent of the hateful content uploaded is removed before anyone sees it.

“As I mentioned in previous meetings with Facebook, Google and Twitter representatives, TikTok and others must adopt and implement the IHRA definition of antisemitism,” Michal Cotler-Wunsh (Blue and White) said, referring to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.

This “includes comparing Israel to Nazi Germany, Holocaust denial as well as delegitimization, demonization and double standards toward Israel – and use this accepted definition to mark antisemitic content.”

During the discussion, Cotler-Wunsch spoke of a disturbing trend on the app called the “Holocaust Challenge,” in which young people pretend to be Holocaust victims in heaven, wearing makeup that imitates burns or bruises while explaining how they died in Nazi-run death camps.

“Antisemitism is an abomination, and antisemitic content has no place on our platform,” said Elizabeth Canter, TikTok’s director of government relations in Israel. “We have zero tolerance for organized and related hate groups. Our community rules reflect our values ​​– and when they are violated, we work to remove the content and close the [associated] accounts.”

TikTok said its policies bar any incitement, attacks, or hate speech against individuals or groups.

“We enforce these rules by combining technologies and over 10,000 content experts,” she said, “and when the rules are violated, we work from content removal to account closure. The technological tools we use proactively flag hate-filled content via identifying images, word filters and machine-based automated tools.

“TikTok regularly collaborates with NGOs and leading bodies in Israel and the European Union, the World Jewish Congress and the Holocaust Educational Foundation, to proactively promote educational content about the Holocaust and the dangers of antisemitism.”

Committee Chairman David Bitan praised the social media platform for its efforts, as did other officials.