Former kickboxer Andrew Tate has been banned from Facebook and Instagram for violating its policies.

A Facebook spokesperson confirmed the ban to Rolling Stone.  

Tate, who had over 4.6 million followers on Instagram, gained notoriety in 2016 after being fired from the reality TV programme Big Brother due to a video that allegedly showed him assaulting a woman.

Since the incident, he has gone viral across multiple social media platforms. In 2017, the 35-year-old commented that women should “carry responsibility” for being sexually attacked. He also commented that he would threaten a woman with a machete and “grip her by the neck” if she ever accused him of cheating.

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At the time of being kicked out of Big Brother, Tate had claimed that the footage had been altered and described it as “a pure fake attempting to make me seem terrible.”

Many, who perceived Tate’s views as homophobic, sexist and racist, welcomed had previously urged social media platforms to ban him. 

Following the ban, Andrew Tate spoke out saying that he is innocent. In a statement to Mirror Fighting, he said: “It is very unfortunate that old videos of me, where I was playing a comedic character, have been taken out of context and amplified to the point where people believe absolutely false narratives about me. In the last two weeks I dedicated over $1million to charities supporting women. I posted this on Instagram, but Instagram ignored it.”

He blamed the media for portraying a false image of him and that platforms like Instagram are “bowing to pressure is a massive shame.”

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Tate’s statement continued: “I have made videos explaining that my mother is my hero, and how men should protect and provide for women. Instagram ignored it. Internet sensationalism has purported the idea that I am anti-women when nothing could be further from the truth. This is simply hate mobs who are uninterested in the facts of the matter trying to personally attack me. They twist facts and produce fancy documents full of half truths and lies to attack people they dont like.”