Twitter suspends account of Al Masirah TV run by Yemen's Houthis

Reuters
·1 min read
File photo of the Twitter logo displayed on a screen on the floor of the NYSE

DUBAI (Reuters) - The Twitter account of Al Masirah TV, the main television news outlet run by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement, was suspended on Wednesday.

Al Masirah on its Telegram channel on Wednesday night said: "Twitter took steps to suspend the accounts of al-Masirah without giving reasons".

Twitter could not immediately be reached for comment, but the @MasirahTV Twitter page now says "Account suspended" for violating the rules of the social media platform, with no posts visible.

Twitter pages associated with a selection of leading Houthi figures, whose statements get published by Masirah, are still functioning.

Houthi forces, who say they are fighting a corrupt system in Yemen, ousted the internationally-recognised government of Yemen from power in the capital Sanaa in late 2014. A Saudi-led coalition then intervened in March 2015.

The conflict has created what the United Nations describes as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

(Writing by Lisa Barrington; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)