Micro-blogging site Twitter said it had blocked a neo-Nazi group’s account at the request of German police in what it called a global first for the company. In a move pitting censorship concerns against national laws on hate speech, Twitter said it had deployed the tool developed this year to comply with the request by the German authorities. “We announced the ability to withhold content back in Jan (January),” Twitter’s chief lawyer Alex Macgillivray said in a tweet posted on the website. “We’re using it now for the first time re: a group deemed illegal in Germany.” Twitter’s spokesman in Germany, Dirk Hensen, confirmed the decision in an email to AFP. Prosecutors in Lower Saxony have launched a probe against around 20 members of Besseres Hannover on charges of inciting racial hatred and creating a criminal organisation. It said once it received an official request to withhold content, it would notify users immediately explaining why their posts could pose legal problems for Twitter, and noted that users may challenge the decision.
