Basketball Ireland’s official Instagram account has been permanently disabled, the sporting body announced, adding that it had appealed the decision and raised the issue with the government.
Basketball Ireland has confirmed that the women’s senior team has received “further increased media and social media attention” in connection with the recent Ireland-Israel match, which featured Israel’s ongoing military operations in Gaza. There have been calls for the Irish team to boycott the match.
Before the match, the Israeli team posed for photos with armed Israeli soldiers, and one Israeli player accused the Irish team of being anti-Semitic.
Basketball Ireland said in a statement today that its Instagram page became inaccessible last Sunday and that on Wednesday it was informed by META (Instagram’s parent company) “via an automated message” that its account had been permanently disabled. .
Basketball Ireland said it was objecting to the move “for no good reason”.
“Basketball Ireland is the national governing body and only publishes information about Irish basketball. Our social media pages are there to showcase our national and international game, from elite to grassroots level.” says the statement.
Message displayed to someone who clicks a link to a deactivated account. Screenshot: Instagram
Screenshot: Instagram
Basketball Ireland said it was aware of the controversy surrounding the FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2025 Qualifier, which was won by Israel, but said the posts on the account did not merit a ban.
“Nothing posted on our social media channels before or since during this period warrants this decision by META. Basketball Ireland has raised this matter with the Government and Sport Ireland. ” said in a statement.
The group said it will continue posting on X, Facebook, TikTok and LinkedIn.
He has also opened an alternative account on Instagram.
journal Mehta has been contacted regarding Basketball Ireland’s statement but has not yet received a response.
