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Twitter permanently bans Trump, Team's accounts citing risk of violent incitement

The company said accounts used by Trump to try to get around the ban could face permanent suspension as well under its "ban evasion" policies.

Twitter permanently bans Trump, Team's accounts citing risk of violent incitement-dnm
Author
Bengaluru, First Published Jan 9, 2021, 10:37 AM IST

Twitter banned President Donald Trump's account citing “the risk of further incitement of violence.” After permanently banning US President Donald Trump, Twitter suspended the account of his presidential campaign. Twitter had permanently suspended the president's go-to megaphone, his @realDonaldTrump personal account, hours earlier.

Trump tweeted "We will not be SILENCED!" from the @POTUS government account, with 33.4 million followers.

The company said accounts used by Trump to try to get around the ban could face permanent suspension as well under its "ban evasion" policies.

"Twitter is not about FREE SPEECH," Trump wrote in the now-deleted tweets, adding that he is considering building his own social media platform in the near future.

With the President muted, son Donald Trump Jr took to Twitter to call the platform's move "absolute insanity."

Twitter shut down his @TeamTrump campaign account shortly after it sent out a tweet with a "statement from President Trump" accusing Twitter of "banning free speech" and coordinating with "the Democrats and the Radical Left" to silence him.

Twitter's move deprives Trump of a potent tool he has used to communicate directly with the American people for more than a decade. He has used Twitter to announce policy changes, challenge opponents, insult enemies, praise his allies (and himself), and to spread misinformation.

Twitter has long given Trump and other world leaders broad exemptions from its rules against personal attacks, hate speech and other behaviours. But in a lengthy explanation posted on its blog Friday, the company said recent Mr. Trump tweets amounted to glorification of violence when read in the context of the Capitol riot and plans circulating online for future armed protests around the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.

It was the first time Twitter has banned a head of state, the company confirmed.

Social media companies have moved swiftly to crack down on Trump and some of his prominent right-wing allies and supporters in the wake of the turmoil in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, which led to five deaths.

(With inputs from agencies)  

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