Maduro Imposes 10-Day Ban on X, Blames Musk for Fueling Post-Election Unrest

By Thursday night, Associated Press journalists in Caracas reported that posts had stopped loading on X across two private telephone services and the state-owned Movilnet.

“Elon Musk is the owner of X and has violated all the rules of the social network itself,” Maduro stated during a speech following a march by pro-government groups. He further added that Musk “has incited hatred.”

Maduro also accused the social network of being used by his opponents to create political unrest.

The Venezuelan president said he had signed a resolution proposed by the National Telecommunications Commission (CONATEL) to remove X, formerly known as Twitter, from circulation in Venezuela for 10 days, allowing time for the platform to present its documentation. Maduro did not provide additional details regarding the process taken against X.

X’s press office did not immediately respond to an email from the Associated Press seeking comment.

“X out for 10 days! Elon Musk out!” Maduro declared.

The announcement follows a series of accusations exchanged between Maduro and Musk over Venezuela’s disputed July 28 presidential election. Electoral authorities declared Maduro the winner. Meanwhile, the opposition claims to have collected records from more than 80% of the 30,000 electronic voting machines nationwide, showing their candidate, Edmundo González, as the true winner.

Musk used X to accuse the self-proclaimed socialist leader of orchestrating a “great electoral fraud,” stating, “Shame on the dictator Maduro,” in a post on Monday.

Since the election, Maduro has emphasized the need to “regulate” social networks in Venezuela, also denouncing that the platform has been used by his adversaries to threaten the families of his supporters, political allies, military personnel, and police officers, contributing to a state of anxiety in the country.