Introduction
As part of its research, the MEMRI Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor follows the multiple ways in which jihadi groups are using Twitter – "tweeting" news flashes, reporting attacks, battles, and other operational activities, and sharing videos, and more.
Jihadi groups' use of Twitter is part of their online media strategy of taking advantage of Western websites and technologies,[1] uploading videos to YouTube[2] and to the Internet Archive,[3] creating official Facebook pages,[4] and other methods. Jihadis have come to depend on free web hosting, where content can be uploaded anonymously, reliably, and at no cost.
Headquartered in San Francisco, California and with servers in San Antonio, Texas, Boston, Massachusetts, and New York, Twitter is increasingly being used by terrorist organizations and their media outlets. Their online followers are growing in number.
Twitter's Terms of Services Supposedly Ban Users "Barred From Receiving Services Under the Laws of the United States" – Yet Growing Number of Designated Terrorist Organizations Are Tweeting
The latest designated terrorist organization active on twitter is Hizbullah (http://twitter.com/#1/almanarnews). Other jihadi organizations include the Somali Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Shabaab Al-Mujahedeen,[5] the Taliban,[6] Jihad Al-Ansar Media,[7] Nukhbat Al-I'lam Al-Jihadi,[8] Ribat Media Center,[9] and many more, on which MEMRI will be reporting soon.
According to Twitter's Terms of Service, account holders may use the Services only if "you [the user] can form a binding contract with Twitter and are not a person barred from receiving services under the laws of the United States or other applicable jurisdiction." [10] Its "Restrictions on Content" states "We reserve the right at all times (but will not have an obligation) to remove or refuse to distribute any Content on the Services and to terminate users or reclaim usernames... We also reserve the right to... enforce the Terms, including investigation of potential violations hereof."[11] Twitter also provides readers with the option to report violations.
Jihadis' use of Twitter should not be dismissed. The terrorist organizations mentioned above, and an ever-growing cadre of online jihadi groups and bloggers supportive of Al-Qaeda, are tweeting 24/7. In fact, according to recent research on Twitter users, Arabic is now the fastest-growing language on the site; the number of Arabic-language tweets is 22 times greater than it was a year ago.[12]
http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/5942.htm
You may read the original post at http://loricamper.com/blog
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