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Amazon will join Apple and Google in suspending the social media platform Parler for failing to prevent incitement to violence.
Amazon has announced that it will suspend Parler, a popular social media platform among right-wing users that has already been banned by Apple and Google for failing to prevent the spread of “threats of violence” after a deadly riot on the US Capitol.
In an email from Amazon Web Services to Parler, first reported by BuzzFeed News, Amazon said it plans to suspend Parler as of 07:59 GMT Monday because he poses a “very real risk to public safety.”
“We have seen a steady increase in this violent content on your website, all of which violates our terms of service,” the email read, the content of which was confirmed by Amazon to news agencies Reuters and AFP.
Amazon also said there is a “serious risk that this type of content will further incite violence.”
The move takes Parler offline unless he can find a new company to host his services.
Right-wing supporters of US President Donald Trump, who was permanently suspended from Twitter on Friday, have flocked to Parler after the deadly violence in Washington, DC on January 6.
The site is also seen as a haven for conservative and right-wing groups that accuse large social media companies like Twitter or Facebook of censoring their posts.
Five people, including a local police officer, were killed in connection with the pro-Trump riot at the Capitol building, which took place as Congress was voting to confirm President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory.
The deadly violence sent shockwaves across the world, spurring calls for accountability and a thorough investigation into what happened.
Dozens of suspected participants have been arrested and some US lawmakers are also pushing for Trump, who incited his supporters during a rally in Washington, DC before the riots, to be held responsible.
For his part, Trump has criticized his permanent suspension from Twitter and promised to reconnect soon.
“We have been negotiating with several other sites and will have a big announcement soon, while also looking at the possibilities of building our own platform in the near future. We will not be silenced! “He said in a statement on January 8.
Google removed Parler from its app store on Friday for allowing posts that seek to “incite ongoing violence in the United States.”
Apple followed suit, saying late Saturday that it had given Parler 24 hours to address complaints that it was being used to “plan and facilitate even more illegal and dangerous activities.”
Cassie Miller, a senior research analyst at the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) that tracks the far right, said that far-right and white supremacist groups have been celebrating the riots as the beginning of a “revolution.”
“There is no way to instantly demobilize this movement and therefore we can probably expect more mass demonstrations and violence,” Miller told Al Jazeera.
Meanwhile, Parler founder John Matze confirmed on his profile that there was a possibility that the network would not be available “for up to a week” while looking for a new host.
Matze also lashed out at Amazon, Google and Apple, saying that Parler was being subjected to “a coordinated attack by the tech giants to end competition in the marketplace.”
“You can expect the war against competition and free speech to continue, but don’t rule us out,” he said.
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