Twitter Locks President Trump's Account For 12 Hours Amid Capitol Protests

Twitter announced it has locked President Donald Trump's account for 12 hours after protests by his supporters at the United States Capitol building forced legislators to evacuate the House and Senate chambers on Wednesday (January 6.)

The Twitter Safety account said Trump's account violated the website's rules, which include "repeated and severe violations of our Civic Integrity."

"As a result of the unprecedented and ongoing violent situation in Washington, D.C., we have required the removal of three @realDonaldTrump Tweets that have been posted earlier today for repeated and severe violations of our Civic Integrity policy," the Twitter Safety account shared. "This means that the account of @realDonaldTrump will be locked for 12 hours following the removal of these Tweets. If the Tweets are not removed, the account will remain locked.

"Future violations of the Twitter Rules, including our Civic Integrity or Violent Threats policies, will result in permanent suspension of the @realDonaldTrump account. Our public interest policy — which has guided our enforcement action in this area for years — ends where we believe the risk of harm is higher and/or more severe."

"We’ll continue to evaluate the situation in real time, including examining activity on the ground and statements made off Twitter. We will keep the public informed, including if further escalation in our enforcement approach is necessary."

Twitter removed Trump's two most recent tweets on Wednesday night, which included a video of the president addressing the protests, but not condemning the participants and instead once again claiming that the 2020 presidential election "was stolen."

Protesters supporting Trump stormed the United States Capitol amid the vote to certify President-elect Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election on Wednesday, forcing elected officials to evacuate the House and Senate chambers.

An announcement was made inside the Capitol ordering lawmakers to evacuate due to "an external security threat" as dozens of protesters forced their way inside the building, the Associated Press reports.

Multiple law enforcement officials confirmed an unidentified woman initially reported to be in critical condition after being shot inside the United States Capitol building during the protest has died, NBC News reports. The woman was reportedly among several people injured and transported to the hospital -- where she was pronounced dead -- after protesters broke into the U.S. Capitol building on Wednesday afternoon.

Both chambers were sent into recess and District of Columbia mayor, Muriel Bowser, implemented a curfew for 6:00 p.m. House Speaker Nancy Pelsoi confirmed the session would resume at some point on Wednesday night.

Photo: Getty Images