Saudi- Twitter controls sought to curb violent rhetoric

(MENAFN- Arab News) Demands were renewed to follow up on genuine and fake Twitter accounts that call for violence. Some Saudi social media advocates said Saudis' daily tweets should controlled. The Ministry of Interior announced last Friday the arrest of two residents who planned to disrupt security by using Twitter. Maj. Gen. Yahya Al-Zayidi, a security expert, said Al-Qaeda's attempts to mobilize foreigners and residents is a clear indication of citizens awareness about the dangers of the organization and its ideology. Al-Qaeda attempted to mobilize foreigners and looked for different methods to spread violence. "The security apparatus in Saudi Arabia and its comprehensive information and geographical data surveying curtailed the spread of Al-Qaeda through social communication networks," he said. He added Al-Qaeda is using Twitter because of the hatred it has against Saudi Arabia. "There is no doubt that Saudi Arabia has a large number of social communication networks, especially on Twitter, which is considered as an important point of expression," said Anwar Eshqi, head of the Middle East Center for Strategic Studies. "Al-Qaeda is trying to broadcast its deceptive thoughts by any means. But the authorities are always on the lookout for them." Eshqi stressed the importance of adopting counseling through Twitter. "Counseling and anti-deceptive thought should be adopted on Twitter," he said. "Deceptive thought depends on those who want to provoke people against their governments, the best example is what happened in Syria and Egypt. Those who provoke people have the direct or indirect backing of their countries, as well as terrorist organizations that pays them for their actions."