16.5 Million Violating Videos from Five Arab Countries by TikTok in Early 2025

On Monday, TikTok revealed that it removed approximately 16.5 million violating videos from five Arab countries between January and March 2025.

In its Community Guidelines Enforcement Report for the first quarter of 2025, TikTok highlighted its ongoing efforts to foster a safe and inclusive digital environment in the Middle East and North Africa region, including Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, the UAE, and Morocco.

In parallel, the platform recorded that it removed more than 19 million violating live streams globally during the same period, a 50% increase compared to the previous quarter, reflecting the development of early violation detection tools.

TikTok banned nearly 850,000 live stream hosts and terminated 1.5 million live streams for guideline violations, as part of efforts to enhance safety policies for live content in Arabic countries.

Egypt saw the removal of 2.9 million violating videos during Q1, with a proactive removal rate of 99.6%, meaning the content was taken down before users reported it. 

Also, 94.3% of the violating content was removed within 24 hours, demonstrating a swift and effective response.

Regarding live streams, 347,935 hosts were banned, and 587,246 live streams were terminated.

In the UAE, TikTok removed 1,051,226 violating videos, with a 98.2% proactive removal rate. Around 94% were removed within less than 24 hours.

The platform also banned 86,790 live stream hosts and terminated 140,295 live streams.

In Morocco, 1,040,981 violating videos were removed with a 98.9% proactive removal rate, and 92.1% were taken down within 24 hours.

TikTok also banned 44,121 hosts and terminated 77,396 live streams.

Iraq recorded the removal of over 10 million violating videos, with a 99.5% proactive removal rate, and 95.5% removed within 24 hours.

For live content, 346,335 hosts were banned, and 649,551 live streams were terminated.

In Lebanon, TikTok removed 1,349,478 violating videos, with a 99.5% proactive removal rate. About 96.9% were removed within 24 hours, reflecting high readiness in detecting violations.

The platform also banned 24,795 live stream hosts and terminated 45,536 live streams.