Donald Trump’s Twitter ban is ‘problematic,’ says Angela Merkel

Jan. 12, 2021

German Chancellor Angela Merkel considers US President Donald Trump’s eviction from Twitter by the company “problematic,” her spokesman said on Monday.

Twitter permanently suspended Trump from the microblogging platform on Friday, citing a “risk of further incitement of violence” in the wake of the storming of the US Capitol by supporters of the outgoing president.

Five people were killed after thousands of Trump supporters marched to and occupied the federal government building in Washington DC following a rally where Trump addressed the crowds.

Asked about Twitter’s decision, Merkel’s spokesman, Steffen Seibert, said the operators of social media platforms “bear great responsibility for political communication not being poisoned by hatred, by lies and by incitement to violence”.

He said it’s right not to “stand back” when such content is posted, for example by flagging it.

The sentiment was echoed at EU level by the bloc’s top diplomat Josep Borrell.

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