Saket Gokhale alleges Modi govt made 8863 orders to remove content, suspend accounts on Twitter
New Delhi: Trinamool Congress national spokesperson Saket Gokhale on Wednesday hit back at the government over refusal of former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s claims that the Indian government “pressured” the microblogging site to act against the critical voices during the farmers protest.
Through a series of tweets, Gokhale has cited official data from Twitter Transparency Reports which suggests that the Centre cracks down critical voices. He shared that India submitted maximum government requests for account information during the peak of Anti-CAA and farmers protests.
Between January to December 2020, the government demanded for user details of 5830 accounts which saw an exponential increase of 425% compared to information sought on 1057 accounts in 2019. He stated that the government made 8863 orders for removal of content & account suspension on Twitter in 2021. However, only 32 were court-ordered.
Gokhale also compared the data with other countries which showcased that India accounted for 8% of the global demands of suspension of Twitter accounts. India made 3992 orders for suspension of 12,916 accounts whereas UK and US ordered suspension for 16 and 32 accounts respectively. Only Turkey (4284) and Russia (8370) demanded for more suspension of accounts than India.
It is crystal clear, Gokhale suggests, that the Modi government made “unprecedented demands for Twitter censorship during the anti-CAA & Farmer Protests”. He further questioned whether the ruling party will have the guts to deny this data and term the same as “lies” and “foreign conspiracy”.
Nailing the lies of Modi Govt on Twitter ex-CEO Jack Dorsey's allegations of censorship & spying:
— Saket Gokhale (@SaketGokhale) June 14, 2023
Modi Govt has denied allegations of indulging in spying & pressure on Twitter & called them "lies".
But here's the truth based on data from Twitter's Transparency Reports.
In the recorded period of the peak of the Anti-CAA & Farmers Protest:
— Saket Gokhale (@SaketGokhale) June 14, 2023
India submitted MAXIMUM GOVT REQUESTS FOR ACCOUNT INFORMATION GLOBALLY during this period
Indian Govt account requests for this period represent 25% OF GLOBAL VOLUME & 15% of ALL GLOBAL ACCOUNTS
(2/13) pic.twitter.com/oyhmEMxvKA
Now in 2021 (COVID period)
— Saket Gokhale (@SaketGokhale) June 14, 2023
Indian Govt requests for user details comprised 19% of TOTAL GLOBAL REQUESTS.
Let's compare this with % of global requests from other countries:
UK was 4%
Germany was 6%
Brazil was 2%
AND WAIT...
PAKISTAN WAS LESS THAN 1%
(4/13) pic.twitter.com/d6RtOD5OV4
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Rocket from Yemen strikes Tel Aviv, injuring 16, as Palestinians mourn 19 dead in Gaza
Tel Aviv, Dec 21: A rocket fired from Yemen hit an area of Tel Aviv overnight, leaving 16 people slightly injured by shattered glass, the Israeli military said Saturday, days after Israeli airstrikes hit Houthi rebels who have been launching missiles in solidarity with Palestinians.
A further 14 people sustained minor injuries as they rushed to shelters when air raid sirens sounded before the projectile hit just before 4 am Saturday, the military said.
The Houthi rebels issued a statement on the Telegram messaging app saying they had aimed a hypersonic ballistic missile at a military target, which they did not identify.
The attack comes less than two days after a series of Israeli airstrikes on Yemen's Houthi rebel-held capital, Sanaa, and port city of Hodeida killed at least nine people. The Israeli strikes were in response to a Houthi attack in which a long-range missile hit an Israeli school building. The Houthis also claimed a drone strike targeting an unspecified military target in central Israel on Thursday.
The Israeli military says the Iran-backed Houthis have launched more than 200 missiles and drones during the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. The Houthis have also been attacking shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and say they won't stop until there is a ceasefire in Gaza.
The Israeli strikes Thursday caused “considerable damage” to the Houthi-controlled Red Sea ports “that will lead to the immediate and significant reduction in port capacity,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. The port at Hodeida has been key for food shipments into Yemen in its decade-long civil war.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said both sides' attacks risk further escalation in the region and undermine UN mediation efforts.
