Twitter blocked a pro-Ukrainian Twitter account for its users in Russia on Monday, but the company wouldn't tell us why — until now.
The social network was responding to a Russian court order that asked Twitter to "immediately remove the information containing appeals to mass riots, extremist activities or participation in mass (public) actions held with infringement of the order established by the law."
Russia's media watchdog Roskomnadzor sent Twitter the court order, which the website ChillingEffects.org first posted on Wednesday. Roskomnadzor has been on a tear this year, blocking websites that were deemed hotbeds of "extremist content."
A supervisor at Roskomnadzor reportedly demanded that Twitter delete the information, according to Russian state media, but it had "failed to satisfy these demands immediately."
The court order specifically says the Twitter account @PravyjSektorRus contains outreach and activities supporting nationalist groups including the "informal right-wing extremist group" Right Sector, and calls for illegal activity and participation in public events. The Twitter account is aligned with a Ukrainian nationalist political group called the Pravy Sektor (Right Sector) that's striving for legitimacy ahead of the May 25 presidential elections.
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