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Twitter sued as a ‘tool and a weapon’ of terrorists by Brussels attack widow

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By John Glenday, Reporter

January 10, 2017 | 2 min read

Social media giant Twitter has found itself on the receiving end of a sensitive lawsuit after being dragged into court by the wife of a New Yorker killed in a terror attack in Brussels last March.

Alexander Pinczowski’s wife accuses the micro blogging platform of effectively serving as a communications mouthpiece for Syrian-based terror group Isis, which has made regular use of its direct messaging service.

A lawsuit filed by Anne Cameron Cain read: “Isis has also used Twitter’s Direct Messaging capabilities for fundraising and operational purposes”, adding that the service had been subverted into a “tool and a weapon of terrorism”.

Cain is seeking unspecified damages from the Silicon Valley firm for its alleged role in facilitating the attack and failing to do more to thwart it, with the precise amount to be contested to be determined at trial.

Pinczowski’s sister, Sascha, died alongside him in the attack.

Twitter is continually suspending accounts related to Isis, and has revoked a total of 350,000 since mid-2015 according to its most recent figures. The company has yet to publicly comment on Pinczowski’s lawsuit.

Last month Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Twitter formed an 'anti-terrorist' pact.

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