Twitter suspends Niger Delta Avengers account

Twitter, the micro blogging site which is one of the fastest growing online platforms has suspended the official account of the Niger Delta Avengers (@NDAvengers) militant group.

The suspension came in the wake of renewed attacks by the group on oil installations in the oil rich yet oil ravaged Niger Delta region of Nigeria.

An official statement has not been released as regards to the account suspension by either Twitter or the Niger Delta Avengers but access to their account which they have used over the past months to communicate is currently blocked.

The message one gets when you try to visit their twitter page is; ‘‘Account suspended’ This account has been suspended. Learn more about why twitter suspends accounts, or return to your timeline.’

#Twitter suspends NDAvengers account. They are now reduced to their website to disseminate info samirasawlani pic.twitter.com/BHbwMJN0j5

— Alfa Ibn Ramadan (@AlfaAllahguide) July 4, 2016

Twitter account suspension rules

According to Twitter: ‘‘In order to maintain a safe environment for users on Twitter, we may suspend accounts that violate theTwitter Rules. Common reasons for suspension may include:

Spam: Most of the accounts we suspend are suspended because they are spammy, or just plain fake, and they introduce security risks for Twitter and all of our users. These types of accounts are against our Twitter Rules. Unfortunately, sometimes a real person’s account gets suspended by mistake, and in those cases we’ll work with the person to make sure the account is unsuspended.

Account security at risk: If we suspect an account has been hacked or compromised, we may suspend it until it can be secured and restored to the account owner in order to reduce potentially malicious activity caused by the compromise.

Abusive Tweets or behavior: We may suspend an account if it has been reported to us as violating our Rules surrounding abuse. When an account engages in abusive behavior, like sending threats to others or impersonating other accounts, we may suspend it temporarily or, in some cases, permanently.’‘

The rule twitter applied

It is clear from Twitter’s rule that the application of the third rule is what resulted in the suspension of the Avengers account. ‘‘When an account engages in abusive behavior, like sending threats to others or impersonating other accounts, we may suspend it temporarily or, in some cases, permanently.’‘

The last option for the Avengers would be to create another handle or to communicate via their website alone or try other social media platforms.