In a first of its kind instance, Myanmar armed soldiers and police officials are using social media app TikTok to disseminate death warnings among anti-coup protesters, said researchers. The actions led the Chinese video-making app to announce that they are removing any content capable of inciting violence, reported Reuters.

Also Read: UN says 54 dead in Myanmar since coup, tells military to ‘stop murdering’ protesters

Myanmar ICT for Development (MIDO), a group working for digital rights in Myanmar said it had found more than 800 pro-army videos used to threaten protesters at the peak time of violence which killed at least 38 protesters killed on Wednesday alone according to the United Nations

“It’s just the tip of the iceberg,” said Htaike Htaike Aung, MIDO executive director, adding that there were “hundreds” of videos threatening uniformed soldiers and police on the app.

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Another video, probably from late February features a man in Army attire aiming at the camera with a rifle while addressing the anti-coup protesters.

“I will shoot in your fucking faces… and I’m using real bullets. I am going to patrol the whole city tonight and I will shoot whoever I see… If you want to become a martyr, I will fulfil your wish,” he said in the video. The video was reviewed by Reuters.

However, news agency Reuters was unable to reach the man or any other uniformed individual in the video and verify if they are in army.

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Meanwhile, TikTok has witnesses tremendous rise in violent and hate speech content from Myanmar following which the social media platform said all such videos will be removed from the platform.

“We have clear Community Guidelines that state we do not allow content that incites violence or misinformation that causes harm… As it relates to Myanmar, we have been and continue to promptly remove all content that incites violence or spreads misinformation, and are aggressively monitoring to remove any such content that violates our guidelines,” said Titok in a statement.

US giant Facebook, which has been a popular platform in Myanmar despite the ban, has strengthened its content safety since being accused of helping to fan atrocities against the Rohingya Muslim minority in 2017. The social media platform has recently banned all the pages related to Myanmar army including the Army page itself.

According to the United Nations, as many as 54 people have been killed and more than 1,700 were detained since Myanmar’s February 1 army coup.