The brutal Islamic army ISIS is threatening violence against the CEO of social-media giant Twitter after the company cut off accounts through which the terrorists were recruiting and issuing threats.
A statement posted on the Internet claiming to be from ISIS features an image of Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey in crosshairs.
The message says, "Your virtual war on us will cause a real war on you."
According to Buzzfeed, Twitter officials are taking the threat seriously.
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"Our security team is investigating the veracity of these threats with relevant law enforcement officials," Twitter spokesman Jim Prosser said.
Twitter, under its terms of service, bars what it considers "direct, specific threats of violence" and has deleted posts and suspended accounts violating the rule.
ISIS, meanwhile, has utilized many channels in social media to publicize its atrocities, apparently to terrorize enemies and recruit members.
Buzzfeed reported the authorship of the post was unclear.
It said, in part: "You started this failed war. We told you from the beginning it's not your war, but you didn't get it and kept closing our accounts on Twitter, but we always come back.
"But when our [soldiers] come and take your breath, you will never come back to life."
Techcrunch reported it's unclear, however, why Twitter is the only group mentioned in the post, because other social media sites have blocked ISIS content.
YouTube has cooperated with the British government and removed graphic video showing the murder of hostages, and Facebook deleted videos showing Jordanian pilot Muadh al-Kasasbeh being burned to death.
In June, Iraq limited access to Facebook, YouTube and Twitter in an attempt to prevent ISIS from spreading propaganda.
The report said ISIS supporters simply upload through various sites that allow anonymous postings.
Business Insider reported the message Sunday was posted on a site called Pastebin.
The Independent reported the threats encompass more than just Dorsey.
The British daily described how a staff member could be attacked by a jihadist on the way home and decapitated.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported in September a Twitter account linked to ISIS called for the assassination of Twitter workers in San Francisco.
The threat came as the social media company worked to shut down accounts run by ISIS.
The tweet said: "Twitter management should know that if they do not stop their campaign in the virtual world, we will … bring the war to them in the real world on the ground."
The latest threats, written in Arabic, also said, "How will you protect your helpless employees, Jack, when their necks become a target for soldiers of the caliphate and supporters scattered in your midst?" the Hill reported.
"Experts have described it [ISIS] as the most Web-savvy terrorist group in history, noting the considerable amount of time spent producing gruesome execution videos that then go viral," the report said.
The report said groups linked to ISIS also have been malicious online, recently taking control of social media accounts belonging to U.S. Central Command and the wife of a U.S. Marine.
One of the statements sent through the hacked Centcom account said: "American soldiers, we are coming, watch your back."
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