US President Donald Trump
Twitter on Friday permanently deactivated President Donald Trump’s world-famous handle two weeks before completing his turbulent four-year tenure.
“After close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them — specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter — we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence,” Twitter said in a statement Friday morning.
The move followed a breach of the U.S. Capitol by supporters of Mr. Trump, during which at least five people were believed killed. Mr. Trump’s supporters were protesting the outcome of the November 3 presidential election which he had also frequently railed against as fraudulent.
“Plans for future armed protests have already begun proliferating on and off-Twitter, including a proposed secondary attack on the US Capitol and state capitol buildings on January 17, 2021,” Twitter said in further justifying its decision.
Shortly after the Capitol was stormed on Wednesday to prevent confirmation of President-elect Joe Biden’s victory by the Congress, Twitter deleted several tweets from Mr. Trump’s handle; while also imposing a 12-hour ban on it.
On Thursday, Facebook deleted all accounts run by Mr. Trump and some of his associates, including his campaign accounts, accusing the president of inciting violence.
Mr. Trump has responded to the bans with a promise to all his supporters that he will come up with another way to propagate his messages.
Although Mr. Trump’s removal from major social media platforms received widespread approval, social media giants have also faced criticism for wielding too much power over speech.
