X (Twitter) Removed Hundreds of Accounts Linked to Hamas, CEO Says

X, formerly known as Twitter, has removed hundreds of accounts associated with Hamas. The company, owned by Elon Musk, is responding in this way to a 24-hour ultimatum from Thiers Breton, Commissioner for the Internal Market and Services of the European Union, who condemned the spread of “illegal content” on the platform related to the attack on Israel.

Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino said in an email that they also removed or flagged tens of thousands of content related to Hamas attacks. He stressed that the company has “reallocated resources and refocused internal teams that are working around the clock to address this rapidly evolving situation.”

In a message to Elon Musk, Breton complained that Twitter had failed to remove “knowingly false or misleading” material. And this despite the condemnation of a number of organizations and the media.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Musk said in a message exchange with Breton in “You are well aware of reports from your users—and authorities—of false content and the glorification of violence,” Breton responded.

Yaccarino, for his part, said this Thursday that there is “no place” for “terrorist organizations or violent extremist groups” on Twitter. The CEO, who has been in office since June last year, stressed that they will continue to remove these accounts in real time.

Hamas attack as a key test for Twitter and other networks

In May, Twitter abandoned the European Union’s voluntary code to curb misinformation on social media. Additionally, in September, a report from the bloc warned that the platform contained more misinformation than any other.

But Elon Musk has further complicated matters in recent days after he recommended Twitter accounts that posted false claims or anti-Semitic comments. “To monitor the war in real time, @WarMonitors and @sentdefender are good. It’s also worth keeping an eye on direct sources on the ground,” he posted last Sunday. Both accounts, for example, spread fake news about the Pentagon explosion in May.

But the alarming signal from the European Union reached not only Musk. Commissioner Breton sent letters to Meta and TikTok, also warning about disinformation surrounding the Hamas attack. “Given that your platform is widely used by children and teenagers, you have a special responsibility to protect them from violent content,” the official in the TikTok case said.

The conflict between Hamas and Israel is one of the first major tests of the European Union’s recently passed Digital Markets Act, which came into force in August. The rule forces social media companies to increase surveillance of their platforms for illegal content such as terrorist content or illegal hate speech. It provides for fines of up to 6% of a company’s global turnover or even suspension of its activities.