A court in Moscow has fined Twitter for failing to delete content the government deems illegal amid Russia's crackdown on social-media networks.
The Magistrate Court of the Taganka district ruled on April 28 that Twitter must pay 3 million rubles ($40,000) for failing to take down materials with instructions on how to make Molotov cocktails, propagating the Nazi swastika, and offending Russia and its national anthem and flag.
Two days earlier, the same court fined Meta Platforms 4 million rubles and the TikTok social-media application 2 million rubles for failing to delete LBGT content that is also considered illegal in Russia.
The decisions by the courts were made at the request of media regulator Roskomnadzor, which has ramped up its crackdown on media and free speech across the country since Russia launched its war in Ukraine on February 24.
As part of that campaign, a court in the town of Lukhovitsy near Moscow ordered Meta Platforms on April 26 to restrict access within Russia to several posts on Instagram and Facebook because they contained references to files from OVD-Info, which monitors political repression in Russia, as well as several other websites.
President Vladimir Putin has accused social-media platforms and other tech giants of flouting the country's Internet laws. He has been pushing to force foreign firms to open offices in Russia and store Russians' personal data on its territory.
Critics say the push has nothing to do with "Internet integrity" and instead accuse the authorities of trying to quell dissent.
