By Jody Godoy WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Facebook parent Meta Platforms bought up nascent rivals Instagram and WhatsApp after its attempts to compete had failed, an attorney for the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said at the beginning of a high-stakes trial in Washington on Monday,

Boasberg will also be presiding over the trial and ruling for or against Meta, since there is no jury. His presence adds another layer of intrigue, since he also ruled against Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members.

Meta Platforms Inc. faces a historic antitrust trial beginning Monday that could force the tech giant to break off Instagram and WhatsApp, startups it bought more than a decade ago that have since grown into social media powerhouses.