Following a legal confrontation with a Brazilian judge, the social media platform X has decided to shut down its operations in Brazil.
The platform, owned by billionaire Elon Musk and previously known as Twitter, made the announcement recently, stating that the closure would take immediate effect, though Brazilian users would still retain access to X.
The decision to withdraw from Brazil was attributed to high tensions with Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, who has been working to curb the spread of disinformation online.
Earlier this year, Moraes ordered X to block certain accounts accused of disseminating false news and hate messages, particularly those associated with supporters of Brazil’s former far-right president. These actions led to prolonged legal issues between the judge and X, with Elon Musk at the centre of the dispute.
In recent developments, X accused Moraes of secretly threatening to arrest one of its legal representatives in Brazil if the company did not comply with orders to remove specific content from the platform.
The company also published what it claimed to be a document signed by Moraes, detailing a daily fine and the possible arrest of the legal representative should X fail to adhere to the judge’s demands.
X defended its decision to close its operations pointing to the need to protect its staff in Brazil. The company conveyed regret over the situation, noting that the responsibility for the closure rested solely with Judge Moraes.
Brazil’s Supreme Court has yet to comment on the matter and has not confirmed the authenticity of the document shared by X.
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