By Pascal Oparada
Social Media/Tech Reporter
Twitter says it has removed trove of accounts associated with countries like Iran, Russia, and Venezuela which, it suspects, are fueling dissent and inciting the public against Isreal and the U.S.
In a blog post, the social media company said individuals and institutions have used their influence on the platform to advance acts that run afoul of its rules.
“We believe that people and organizations with the advantages of institutional power and which consciously abuse our service are not advancing healthy discourse but are actively working to undermine it. By making this data open and accessible, we seek to empower researchers, journalists, governments, and members of the public to deepen their understanding of critical issues impacting the integrity of public conversation online, particularly around elections. This transparency is core to our mission,” Twitter said.
Twitter released the names of the accounts it said violated its community rules and incited people against countries, especially accounts originating from Russia for meddling in the 2016 election in the U.S. and Iran for inciting people against Israel.
It also removed accounts originating from Venezuela with links to the Russian firm, Internet Research Agency (IRA). According to Twitter, the accounts are operating in Venezuela but with deep connections with IRA.
The company said it has also shut down over 6,000 accounts it believes are associated or backed by the Iranian government.
“…the account sets all originated in Iran, and we believe all are associated with — or directly backed by — the Iranian government,” it said.
Other countries targeted by the purge also includes Spain which it said Catalan separatist movements use its platform to promote their agenda.
Last week, the Nigerian secret police, the Department of State Services (DSS) arrested some social media users for posting what it says is inciting comments and promised to continue to crack down on individuals who use social media to incite people to violence.
Analysts believe the move is to muzzle free speech.
