Facebook has announced it has taken down a major online propaganda campaign believed to be linked to the government of Saudi Arabia.

The social media giant said it had detected two different operations of “inauthentic behaviour” originating from the Middle East and North Africa, one of which was tied to marketing firms in Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, and did not appear linked to any government.

The other operation, which involved hundreds accounts that had more than 1.4m followers, had been traced to the government of Saudi Arabia and promoted material that placed the kingdom in a good light, while disparaging its enemies.

“The page [administrators] and account owners typically posted in Arabic about regional news and political issues, including topics like the Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, his economic and social reform plan “Vision 2030,” and successes of the Saudi armed forces, particularly during the conflict in Yemen,” Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of cybersecurity policy, wrote in a blog post.

“They also frequently shared criticism of neighbouring countries including Iran, Qatar and Turkey, and called into question the credibility of Al-Jazeera news network and Amnesty International. Although the people behind this activity attempted to conceal their identities, our review found links to individuals associated with the government of Saudi Arabia.”

Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Show all 15 1 /15 Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Facebook is born On 4 Feb, 2004, 19-year-old Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg launched a website called 'TheFacebook' from his dorm. Within 24 hours the college social network had more than 1,000 users Wikimedia Commons Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Winklevoss twins sue Zuckerberg Within one week of launching, fellow Harvard students Cameron Winklevoss, Tyler Winklevoss and Divya Narendra accused Zuckerberg of stealing their idea. It would be four years later when the resulting lawsuit was finally settled Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Open for business The social network finally opened it platform to everyone on 26 September, 2006. The move proved the catalyst in supercharging the site's already explosive growth PA Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Billion-dollar bid Yahoo offered $1 billion to buy Facebook in September 2006 but Zuckerberg turned it down. 'I don’t know what I could do with the money,' Zuckerberg reportedly said. 'I’d just start another social networking site' Reuters Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network In the money In September 2009, almost five years since the site launched, Facebook turned a profit for the first time Getty Images/iStockphoto Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Taking the lead Facebook overtook MySpace in 2010 to become the world’s most popular social network Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Taking on the tech giants In 2011, Google launched its own social network that it hoped would knock Facebook from its perch. Despite its initial success, Google+ ultimately failed and will be shut down completely in 2019 Getty Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Facebook goes public On 18 May, 2012, Facebook went public. The initial public offering raised $16 billion – the third largest in US history Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Gobbling up the competition Facebook acquired Instagram in April 2012 for $1 billion, consolidating its position as the world's leading social network Reuters Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network One billion users On 4 October, 2012, Zuckerberg announced that Facebook had hit 1 billion users. 'If you’re reading this: thank you for giving me and my little team the honour of serving you,' he wrote in a blog post Getty Images Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Expanding its empire In February 2014 Facebook acquired the messaging app WhatsApp for $19.3 billion REUTERS/Dado Ruvic Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Two billion users In June 2017, Facebook passed the 2 billion user milestone REUTERS/Dado Ruvic Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Privacy scandal On 17 March 2018, news broke that UK firm Cambridge Analytica had harvested data from around 87 million Facebook users for the purpose of political profiling in the build up to the 2016 US presidential elections Shutterstock Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Record profits Despite the scandals and subsequent #DeleteFacebook campaign, Facebook posted record profits just before its 15th anniversary, the equivalent of $7.37 from each of its 2.32 billions users iStock/Independent Facebook birthday: 15 defining moments for the social network Unhappy users A study found that people are happier when they don’t use Facebook, adding to mounting evidence surrounding the impact social media has on mental health Rex Features

The powerful crown prince has become a major ally of countries such as the US, and Donald Trump has gone out of his way not to accuse him over the 2018 muder of dissident journalist, Jamal Khashoggi.

Saudi Arabia has adamantly denied the crown prince, often referred to by his initials, MBS, had anything to do with the killing, which the kingdom has blamed on a senior aide, Saud al-Qahtani, and "rogue agents".

Such has been his support for Saudi Arabia and the young royal, Mr Trump has vetoed congressional resolutions that would have ended US support for the kingdom's war against rebels in Yemen, an operation that has resulted in the deaths of thousands of civilians and triggered a humanitarian catastrophe.

However, last year it was reported the CIA had concluded the 33-year-old prince has ordered the assassination of the journalist, who was killed after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to apply for marriage papers.

In June, a report by Agnes Callamard, special rapporteur for the UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the prince should be investigated over the death as there was “credible evidence” linking him and other senior officials to the murder.

Kay Burley asks Jeremy Hunt about Saudi Arabia 'cutting journalists up into little bits'

There has been no immediate response to Facebook’s comments and actions from the Saudi government. Enquiries to the Saudi Embassy in Washington DC did not receive an immediate response.

Facebook has launched a series of probes into false accounts, an undertaking that has taken on mounting importance in the light of Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

In its blog, Facebook said it had been helped in its work by the work investigative journalist site, Bellingcat.

In January, it took down 364 Facebook pages and accounts operated from Russia and targeting the Baltics, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Central and Eastern European countries.

Also in January, it removed 783 pages, groups and accounts engaged in “coordinated inauthentic behaviour tied to Iran”, and 234 accounts, pages and groups on Facebook and Instagram operating as part of a domestic network in Indonesia.

In February, it removed 168 Facebook accounts, 28 pages and eight Instagram accounts targeting people in Moldova. In March, it removed 137 Facebook and Instagram accounts, pages and groups operating as part of a domestic-focused network in Britain.