Twitter Suspends ISIS Account After Insurgency-Related Tweets
Twitter has suspended an account affiliated with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) after the extremist group's violent activity in northern Iraq was live-tweeted, according to Buzzfeed.
The account in question was called @Nnewsi and had 20,000 followers. According to Buzzfeed, who broke the story, @Nnewsi live-tweeted the extremist group's advance across Iraq. A number of ISIS-related Twitter accounts exists, some claiming direct affiliation with the group. ISIS regularly tweets updates, photos and messages from its leadership.
Wikileaks denounced Twitter's suspension.
ISIS seeks to establish a Sunni Islamic caliphate in northern Iraq and Syria. It has actively fought against Syrian President Bashar Assad since the beginning of the Syrian Civil War in 2011. It was affiliated with al Qaeda until February 2014, when al Qaeda disavowed any relationship with the group.
This week ISIS made advances across northern Iraq, driving back government troops and capturing Iraqi cities, including its second largest, Mosul.
Twitter has a policy against threatening language on Twitter and says "Users may not make direct, specific threats of violence against others, including threats against a person or group on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, age, or disability."
According to Buzzfeed, Twitter can also shut down an account on the request of a government. The Iraqi government shut down Facebook, Google, Twitter and YouTube earlier today in fears that ISIS was using them to organize their activities.
© Copyright IBTimes 2024. All rights reserved.