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Turki Bin Abdul Aziz Al-JasserSaudi Arabian journalist and writer
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Death of Turki Al-Jasser
Saudi journalist and writer Turki bin Abdul Aziz Al-Jasser was tortured to death in prison. According to New Khaleej, the imprisoned journalist died after being tortured in Saudi Arabia.
Citing human rights organizations, New Khaleej reported that Al-Jasser fell into disfavor and was subjected to inhumane treatment after Saudi authorities discovered his secret Twitter account, Kashkool. On his Twitter page, the journalist wrote about human rights abuses by officials and members of the royal family. Al-Jasser was allegedly exposed by Saudi spies operating out of Twitter's regional office in Dubai.
The writer was arrested on March 15, 2018, and was killed one month after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, whose body was allegedly dismembered and dissolved in acid. Human rights groups believe that the spies involved in Al-Jasser's death are part of a Saudi cyber-army created by Saud Al-Qahtani, the former aide to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman.
Twitter's Involvement
Following news of Al-Jasser's death, many took to social media to highlight the "unsafety" of Twitter using the hashtag #TwitterKilledTurkiAlJasser. One user wrote, "We want justice for activists who got arrested because of Twitter." Another said, "Twitter is not safe anymore," while a third stated, "Twitter should revise their privacy policy immediately."
Al-Qahtani, who was fired following the scandal surrounding Khashoggi's murder, tweeted that officials used "three methods" to expose activists on social media in the past year. In a 2017 post, Al-Qahtani stated that "fake names won't save dissidents."
"You think the nickname will save you from our reach? You are mistaken," Al-Qahtani wrote. "First, the state has learned ways to identify the entity behind it. Second, the IP address can be identified by many technical means. Third, there is another secret that I will not reveal."
In response, a Twitter spokesperson stated, "We severely restrict access to user account information. Only a narrow group of employees with a strong privacy and security track record has access to this data."
"We believe it is our responsibility to protect those who use our service to advocate for equality, freedom of expression, and human rights," the Twitter spokesperson added.
"We will continue to take steps to address privacy violations and improve overall security," the representative said.
