Here's why Facebook has banned military accounts in MyanmarAug 27 (AZINS) Facebook has banned many high profile accounts in Myanmar saying they "inflame ethnic and religious tensions" in the country. "We are removing a total of 18 Facebook accounts, one Instagram account and 52 Facebook Pages, followed by almost 12 million people," Facebook stated in a post. The social networking service company deleted the accounts of Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and the military's Myawady television network. "We want to prevent them from using our service to further inflame ethnic and religious tension," the post read. Deleting the accounts for "engaging in coordinated inauthentic behavior on Facebook" the post said that "this type of behavior is banned on Facebook because we want people to be able to trust the connections they make." Earlier this month, Facebook shared an update on the steps it was taking to prevent the spread of hate and misinformation on the social media platform.

The government uses Facebook to make major announcements, including the resignation of the country's president in March. Facebook said it had banned 20 individuals and organisations to prevent the spread of "hate and misinformation" after reviewing the content.

More than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims fled the state for Bangladesh after a security crackdown launched in response to attacks by Rohingya militants. Min Aung Hlaing's pages - one of which was "liked" by 1.3 million people - gave detailed running commentaries of what it said were battles with the militants.

Other posts showed the bespectacled commander in civilian clothing giving alms to monks, or viewing potential weapon purchases abroad. The accounts showed military doctors treating the sick and soldiers performing public works in rural areas. The military also operates its own newspaper and television station, but Facebook has allowed it to communicate in real time, even as operations unfolded on the ground. Facebook said the accounts it banned on Monday had 12 million followers.

"Facebook has been the key channel enabling the military's communication with the public and this ban will hit their communication ability hard," said Richard Horsey, a Yangon-based independent political analyst and former U.N. diplomat to the country.