The decision dates back to October 7, 2023, when the Hamas attack on Israel took place, but in reality it has only been known for a few hours. Since this tragic event, Twitch no longer allowed certain Israeli and Palestinian users to register on its streaming platform.
It is the specialized media 404 that reveals the information, after the Twitch support account in X explained that “registrations with email verification in Israel and Palestine” had been “temporarily deactivated.”
“An unacceptable failure”
For Twitch, it was about preventing the distribution of photographs and videos related to the attack and thus “protecting current users” of the Amazon service.
If it was still possible to register by verifying your account via SMS, Twitch simply forgot to restore email verification.
“We learned that we inadvertently did not re-enable email verification logs for any of the regions,” Twitch said. “We deeply regret this unacceptable error and the confusion it has caused. We have fixed the issue, meaning all affected users can register with email verification.”
The first complaints about this issue date back to May, but Twitch’s response did not arrive until Sunday evening, especially after the issue was raised by Israeli media.
Since Monday, October 21, it was once again possible to register from these territories.
It’s no surprise that Twitch is taking steps to prevent the distribution of illegal content. On several occasions, the platform has been used by terrorists to broadcast murders live, despite complaints from users.
Source: BFM TV
