TikTok Took Action on Posts About Osama bin Laden "Letter to America" Amid Apparent Viral Trend

TikTok took action on Thursday to curb posts related to Osama bin Laden "Letter to America," written after the September 11, 2001 attacks by the al Qaeda leader. In the 2002 letter, bin Laden sought to justify the attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives. He criticized U.S. military bases in the Middle East and its support for Israel, claiming the Quran justified retaliation.

The letter gained traction on TikTok during the Israel-Hamas conflict, with users sharing how it impacted their views on 9/11 and U.S. foreign policy. TikTok, disputing reports of its trend, stated that content promoting the letter violated its rules, with the platform actively removing such content and investigating its origin. The #lettertoamerica hashtag amassed 13.7 million views, and "Letter to America" trended on Twitter with over 82,000 posts.

Amid the surge in interest, The Guardian removed a 2002 web page containing the full text of bin Laden letter, citing its sharing on social media without proper context. White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates criticized the trend, especially concerning given the rise in antisemitic violence following the October 7 Hamas attacks in Israel.

Bates emphasized that there is no justification for spreading the "repugnant, evil, and antisemitic lies" of bin Laden, associating them with the motivation behind the 9/11 attacks. He warned against insulting the families of the 2,977 victims by aligning with bin Laden words.