Join on WhatsApp
Join on Telegram
Rabat – Moroccan Twitter users are banding together against perceived abuse of Twitter rules by Algerian users attempting to get Moroccans blocked for tweets that mock Algeria.
Disgruntled Moroccan users have created a hashtag (#متابعه_الحسابات_المغربيه), the Arabic variant of #Follow_Moroccan_Accounts, which is trending today on Twitter, with close to 200,000 mentions and retweets.
Launched today, the hashtag calls on Moroccan Twitter users to support Moroccan accounts against “foreign bullying,” harnessing Twitter policies against misinformation and hate speech to block Twitter accounts belonging to Moroccans.
Another variant to the hashtag (#متابعة_الحسابات_المغربية) is equally viral on the platform, with over 6000 interactions, according to BrandMentions, a hashtag analytics platform.
The dispute revolves around Moroccan allegations that Algerian twitter users are stifling debate by repeatedly labeling light-hearted critiques or mockery of Algeria as “hate speech,” or “incitement to violence.”
Read Also: ‘Potato Expert’: Viral Hashtag Mocks Algeria’s Regime Amid Economic Crisis
One Twitter user retweeted an email he received from the platform on the backdrop of blocking his account. Following the blocking of his account, he tweeted: “Now I know for sure who is behind the campaign on Moroccan Twitter accounts..”
Attached is a screenshot of an email concerning a tweet mocking a video of an Algerian expert who went viral in January, 2022 as he was captioned as “potato expert”
?| وصلتهم رسالتي ..
ودابا تأكدت 100% شكون وراء الحملة ضد الحسابات المغربية.#متابعة_الحسابات_المغربية https://t.co/HgAeDjVBQl pic.twitter.com/PAmcbyaABI
— H A S S A N ?? حساب احتياطي (@2nd_HMeghribi) February 10, 2022
While not explicitly mentioning Algeria, tweets mentioning the hashtag all agree that they were blocked after posting anti-Algerian content.
Others have more bluntly pointed the finger at the Algerian regime, with tweets mocking the deteriorating status quo of the military-ruled North African country.
Amidst the retweets, some users have also complained about receiving emails from Twitter informing them that their Twitter accounts have been temporarily blocked over safety concerns, as the platform detected unusual traffic on their accounts.
Read Also: Moroccan Government Refuses to Comment on Algeria’s Protests
Tweets containing the hashtag generally feature content calling Moroccan Twitter users to bond together over the “common enemy.”
#متابعة_الحسابات_المغربية pic.twitter.com/aQAKN8zIeu
— Anas bn3isa (@Anas85537097) February 11, 2022
Moroccan Twitter users condemned what they refer to as a “vicious campaign,” with one user tweeting: “Their bullying will only make us stronger. We are one mobilized by our love for our country’s reputation.”
#متابعة_الحسابات_المغربية
لن يزيدنا تنمرهم إلا قوة
كلنا واحد يحركنا حب والغيرة على سمعة هذا الوطن ???❤— Sayda saida (@almalibre2016) February 9, 2022
