X claims it will stop operations in Brazil

X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, announced on Tuesday that it is ending operations in Brazil, though the service will continue to be available for its users within the country.

The move follows a judicial standoff involving the nation's Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who had ordered blocking a few accounts on X in relation to investigations into election disinformation and "digital militias.".

In a post from X's global government affairs account, the company said Moraes has "threatened our legal representative in Brazil with arrest if we do not comply with his censorship orders." As a result, to protect the safety of our staff, we have made the decision to close our operation in Brazil, effective immediately, the company continuedService X will remain available for Brazilian residents.

An earlier post by X listed some of the accounts targeted, saying they included "a pastor, a current congressman, and the wife of a former congressman." The company then seemed to backtrack on that, stating the accounts will be placed on hold. " In a tweet this morning, X said, "Our Brazilian staff have no responsibility or control over the blocking of content on our platform," and it added, "Brazilians have a choice between democracy and Alexandre Moraes."