Anti-Islam Group Complaints Lead Navy’s Islamic Twitter Account Shut Down

By Nathan Glover --
09 Jan 2016 --

Australian Navy Twitter account closed for political statements on Islam.

An official Australian Navy Twitter account run by Captain Mona Shindy, chief strategy adviser related to Islamic matters, was switched off within a few days after an official complaint was made against its content by a group known for its anti-Islam leaning. Captain Shindy was previously active on @navyislamic until it was shut down on December 22.

Anti-Islam Group Complaints Lead Navy’s Islamic Twitter Account Shut Down[/tweetthis]

In September, The @navyislamic account retweeted Anne Aly, an expert on counter-terrorism, on the night Australia appointed a new prime minister. The account questioned why the new prime minister had given a speech and yet had not mentioned boats, death cult, national security and terrorism.

In October, the official navy account was utilized to attack the Australian Liberty Alliance (ALA), a newly formed Queensland headquartered political party. The party was started by Geert Wilders, a controversial Dutch politician. The tweet chastised the party and expressed the opinion that the party members are threatening and ill-informed, and that their actions can tear up the community.

The @navyislamic account was again used in November after the terror attacks in Paris, this time too with a clear political slant. It tweeted the #IstandWithTheMufti hashtag. This tweet described Ibrahim Abu Mohamed, the Grand Mufti, as a courageous and righteous man and who critically denounces terrorism and the Islamic State.

Captain Shindy has spent 26 years in the Australian Navy and commands the Guided Missile Frigate Program. She has called for one word, “Islam,” that must be absent when reporting on Islamic state during policy talk. This view was expressed in an essay that was published in June.

According to reports in the Australian media, Captain Shindy has asked for a fearless and frank debate concerning the triggers and actual cause of Islamic grievances. She mentioned foreign policy double standards and noted that a number of Australian Muslims felt marginalized.

A spokesperson of the Australian Defense Department told the media that country's navy has consolidated its social media platforms. The intention is to create a “single source” and “strengthen its messaging in synch with its support to traditional media.” The @navyislamic account was shut down 12 days after the complaint made by Debbie Robinson, the ALA head. She asked the Australian Defense Force to ask the navy to either distance itself from this particular account or just delete it. Robinson has previously described Islam as a “dangerous ideology.”

Extreme, ill-informed fringe group shuts down Twitter account for calling it an "extreme, ill-informed fringe group” https://t.co/deDevblKep
— Alyx Gorman (@AlyxG) January 6, 2016