Twitter has suspended a fake account @ANTIFA_US, attributed to the ultra-left wing anti-fascist group, that was run by the white nationalist group Identity Evropa. Twitter's action was triggered by a tweet in which the group called for violence, using Antifa's fake handle.
"Tonight's the night, Comrades. Tonight we say "F**k The City" and we move into the residential areas...the white hoods...and we take what's hours," tweeted the group, before its account was taken down by the platform. According to a Twitter spokesperson, it violated the company's platform manipulation and spam policy, specifically linked to the creation of a fake account. This isn't the first time that the company has removed a fake account created by Identity Evropa, the spokesperson added, NBC News reported.
Twitter has intensified its crackdown on fake accounts, calls for violence and misinformation. Last week, it labeled Donald Trump's tweet as "unsubstantiated" and attached fact check links to it. Anguished Trump signed an executive order, aimed at stripping social media companies off legal protections.
It again flagged Trump's tweet on Minnesota protesters, for violating the company's rules against glorifying violence. On Monday, it did the same to a tweet by Matt Gaetz, a Republican member of the House of Representatives. In his tweet, Gaetz said that if Antifa is seen as a terrorist, "can we hunt them down like we do those in the Middle East?".
As widespread violence, riots, vandalism, and ransacks marred several protests over the killing of George Floyd, Trump has blamed the far-right Antifa for it. On Sunday, he announced that his administration will designate the anti-fascist group, "a Terrorist Organization".
About Antifa
Short for "Anti-Fascists", the group is said to have borrowed the term from German Antifa, short for antifaschistisch 'anti-fascist', according to Merriam-Webster. It was a multiparty front initiated by the German Communist Party in 1932 to counter Nazism. Although the group has had a presence in the U.S., its beginnings are not well known.
The group doesn't have a well-organized structure and has members from other groups, such as Black Lives Matter. The group speaks for LGBTQ and indigenous people's rights, but what sets it apart is the violence. On multiple occasions, it has engaged in a physical confrontation with members of white nationalist and supremacist groups.
About Identity Evropa
Rebranded as American Identity Movement, Identity Evropa is a neo-Nazi, white supremacist group that was founded in the U.S. in 2016. It is designated as a 'hate group' by the South Poverty Law Center and a "white supremacist" group by Anti-Defamation League.
