Twitter permanently suspends Donald Trump's account over 'risk of further incitement of violence'

Social media giant Twitter on Friday announced that it is banning US President Donald Trump from its platform, citing "risk of further incitement of violence" following a pro-Trump mob breaching the US Capitol on Wednesday.

On Twitter, Donald Trump's handle is now an empty white page, frozen with 51 followed accounts and 88.7 million followers and two words on the center of the screen saying "Account suspended".

"After close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them a" specifically how they are being received and interpreted on and off Twitter a" we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence," Twitter said in a statement.

The microblogging site said that it will continue to be transparent around its policies and their enforcement.

In a tweet on Friday, Trump said that millions of those who voted for him would have "a giant voice long into the future" and they will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way.

"The 75,000,000 great American Patriots who voted for me, AMERICA FIRST, and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, will have a GIANT VOICE long into the future. They will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form!!!" he said.

"To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th," he said in another tweet.

Late January 6, Trump was locked out of his account for 12 hours after a violent mob loyal to him stormed the US Capitol to try to stop Congress from certifying President-elect Joe Biden's victory.

Twitter had blocked Trump's account from posting on their platform after the protests broke out in Washington, while Facebook on Thursday suspended his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely. Popular gaming platform Twitch has also banned Donald Trump's official channel on its platform indefinitely.

A chaotic and violent scene erupted at the Capitol as supporters of Trump stormed the building to protest the Electoral College vote, forcing a lockdown and various confrontations with police. 

On the same afternoon, Trump posted a video on Twitter calling his supporters "very special" people. Five people, including a Capitol Police officer, are reported dead after the violence on January 6.

Wednesday's violence came hours after Trump encouraged his supporters to fight against the election results as Congress was certifying Biden's victory in the November vote.

"Due to the ongoing tensions in the United States, and an uptick in the global conversation in regards to the people who violently stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, these two Tweets must be read in the context of broader events in the country and the ways in which the President's statements can be mobilized by different audiences, including to incite violence, as well as in the context of the pattern of behavior from this account in recent weeks," said Twitter.

(With agency inputs)