As part of its research, the MEMRI Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor follows the multiple ways in which jihadi groups are using Twitter "tweeting" news flashes, reporting attacks, battles, and other operational activities, and sharing videos, and more.
Jihadi groups' use of Twitter is part of their online media strategy of taking advantage of Western websites and technologies, uploading videos to YouTube and to the Internet Archive, creating official Facebook pages, and other methods. Jihadis have come to depend on free web hosting, where content can be uploaded anonymously, reliably, and at no cost.

Headquartered in San Francisco, California and with servers in San Antonio, Texas, Boston, Massachusetts, and New York, Twitter is increasingly being used by terrorist organizations and their media outlets. Their online followers are growing in number.

Twitter's Terms of Services Supposedly Ban Users "Barred From Receiving Services Under the Laws of the United States" yet Growing Number of Designated Terrorist Organizations Are Tweeting. The latest designated terrorist organization active on Twitter is Hizbullah (http://twitter.com/#1/almanarnews). Other jihadi organizations tweeting include the Somali Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Shabaab Al-Mujahedeen, the Taliban, Jihad Al-Ansar Media, Nukhbat Al-I'lam Al-Jihadi, Ribat Media Center, and many more, on which MEMRI will be reporting soon.

Twitter's Terms of Service state that account holders may use the Services only if "you [the user] can form a binding contract with Twitter and are not a person barred from receiving services under the laws of the United States or other applicable jurisdiction. "Its "Restrictions on Content" state, "We reserve the right at all times (but will not have an obligation) to remove or refuse to distribute any Content on the Services and to terminate users or reclaim usernames... We also reserve the right to... enforce the Terms, including investigation of potential violations hereof." Twitter also provides readers with the option to report violations.

Jihadis' use of Twitter should not be dismissed. The terrorist organizations mentioned above, and an ever-growing cadre of online jihadi groups and bloggers supportive of Al-Qaeda, are tweeting 24/7. In fact, according to a report on Twitter users by the French social media research firm Semiocast conducted in November 2011, Arabic is now the fastest-growing language on the site; the number of Arabic-language tweets is 22 times greater than it was at in November 2010.

Is Twitter Breaking the Law? The U.S. Government's Emerging Policy
Over the past month as it has been reported that terror organizations, including the Taliban and the Somali Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Shabaab Al-Mujahedeen, have been tweeting - there is increasing pressure on Twitter to act. A December 18, 2011 "Washington Post" report revealed that "U.S. officials have grown increasingly concerned about extremists' stepped-up activity on social media sites, citing cases in which Americans have been recruited online by terrorists overseas."

As far back as April 2011, Twitter was asked by "The Washington Times" to comment on reports about the Taliban Twitter account and about the law prohibiting provision of services to designated terrorist groups but refused to do so. The newspaper report did quote Senator Joseph Lieberman as saying that he believed that the Taliban's use of Twitter "would be violating the company's terms of use."

Subsequently, "The Los Angeles Times" reported, on November 23, 2011, that after some Congressmen urged Twitter to stop hosting pro-Taliban tweets, Twitter executives told lawmakers that the micro-posts do not violate the website's terms of service because the Taliban is not listed by the State Department as a foreign terrorist organization. Such a designation would make it illegal to provide 'material support or resources' to the group. [While the Pakistani Tehreek-e Taliban was designated by the U.S. State Department as both a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Special Designated Global Terrorist Organization, in September 2010, the Afghan Taliban has not been so designated.] On this occasion too, "Twitter officials did not respond to requests for comment," according to "The Los Angeles Times," November 23, 2011.

When it was discovered that Al-Shabaab - which was designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the U.S. State Department in 2008 had launched a Twitter account and begun tweeting on December 7, 2011, questions arose regarding whether the government or Twitter would take action. A State Department spokesman said, "We are looking closely at the facts of this situation to determine what the appropriate next steps might be. ("The New York Times," December 20, 2011).

According to a December 20, 2011 "The New York Times" report, "some American officials said the government was exploring legal options to shut down the Shabaab's new Twitter account, potentially opening a debate over the line between free speech and support for terrorism... American officials said they were worried that the Shabaab might be using Twitter to reach potential recruits in the West."

Again, just as Twitter refused to comment to "The Washington Times" and the "Los Angeles Times," company spokesman Matt Graves told "The New York Times" on December 19, 2011, as reported by the paper on December 20, 2011, "I appreciate your offer for Twitter to provide perspective for the story, but we are declining comment on this one."

Hizbullah and Al-Manar TV: Another State Department-Designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations Using Twitter
The Lebanese-based Hizbullah terrorist organization has killed more Americans than any other terrorist organization except for Al-Qaeda; most recently, Hizbullah made headlines on December 16, 2011, when Ali Musa Daqduq, a Hizbullah commander, was handed over from U.S. custody to the Iraqi government.