It creates circles of like-minded people where it is really easy to reject “other” thoughts and accept “our” ideas without much questioning.

I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but there is an argument to be made that we should actually go back to smaller, more secluded forums on the internet that are less connected with outside views.

I generally agree with your points on not wanting to create echo chambers; however, another reason for temporarily banning the topic imo is not just to block people talking about it but also to protect people who are already hurting, grieving, and generally just trying to find some sort of escape at the moment. Creating a space that will guarantee a temporary escape is nice, I think.

Absolutely. If this rule was a permanent rule I don't think so many people would defend it. However from experience (reddit for example) I think many people know that US politics has the ability to claim and overrun just about every space on the "western" internet. This is not something that really creates value for many people especially those that don't live in the US and I think this ruling is trying to prevent that.