Telegram has reportedly intensified restrictions on accounts associated with the Palestinian militia group Hamas, with several channels now appearing inaccessible in recent weeks.
Hamas-affiliated accounts in both Arabic and English, along with the Al-Qassam Brigades’ account, previously used for news reporting purposes, have faced apparent limitations. Users attempting to access these channels in the United States receive the message, “This channel can’t be displayed because it violated local laws,” even when using a VPN to bypass the restrictions.
This move aligns with Telegram’s ongoing efforts to comply with Apple and Google’s app-store policies by limiting access to channels downloaded through their platforms, while not applying the same restrictions to channels accessed via Telegram’s website.
Following the arrest of Telegram CEO Pavel Durov in France last month over alleged moderation violations, the platform announced it would share IP addresses and phone numbers of users facing legal actions. Additionally, Telegram has implemented the use of moderators and AI to filter out “problem content” from public search results.
Durov emphasized the platform’s commitment to removing illegal content, stating, “Search on Telegram is more powerful than in other messaging apps because it allows users to find public channels and bots.” However, he did not specifically address geopolitical conflicts in his recent statements, focusing instead on Telegram’s stance against criminal activities.
These restrictions on Hamas-linked accounts have effectively curtailed public access to their statements, influencing the flow of information related to ongoing conflicts and giving Israel greater control over messaging around its military efforts.
