Violence against Muslims in Sri Lanka was fueled at least in part by Facebook's inadequate monitoring and removal of anti-Muslim hate speech, according to rights advocates.

Fueled by misinformation spread on social media, including a viral video falsely alleging that a Muslim restaurateur had poisoned Sinhala-Buddhist customers, riots started in Ampara, Sri Lanka, and quickly spread. 

At least three people were killed and many businesses and mosques were destroyed in the violence that ensued. In addition, the riots negatively impacted Sri Lanka's economy, with many tourists cancelling visits to the heavily tourist-dependent country.

The Sri Lankan government responded by temporarily banning Facebook and other social media platforms to prevent further violence.

Facebook's failure to act on numerous warnings about hate speech and its inadequate response to the situation drew widespread criticism. The company admitted that its platform had been misused and recognised the human rights impacts resulting from its inaction. 

Following the incident, Facebook committed to improving its content moderation practices, including hiring local language moderators and enhancing technology to detect hate speech.

The controversy surrounding Facebook's role in the riots highlighted the broader issue of social media's impact on communal tensions and violence, particularly against vulnerable groups.