Russia sues Google, Facebook, Twitter, others for refusal to delete protest content

By Joseph Ayinde

Russian authorities on Tuesday, filed cases against Twitter, Google, Facebook, Tiktok and Telegram, at a court in Moscow, for allegedly failing to delete posts that urged children to take part in illegal protests.

According to a report by Interfax News Agency (INA), Twitter, Google, and Facebook each have three cases against them, with each violation punishable by a fine of up to 4 million roubles (about $54,000).

The cases were said to have been opened after the kick-off of nationwide protests, over last month’s jailing of Alexei Navalny, a prominent critic of President Vladimir Putin.

Meanwhile, the report noted that Navalny and his supporters maintained that his 30-month jail sentence for alleged parole violations, was trumped up for political reasons, and was related to an embezzlement case, something the authorities deny.

According to Interfax, Google declined to comment on the report, while Facebook, Twitter, Tiktok and Telegram did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The cases against Google, Facebook and Twitter were scheduled to be heard on April 2.