A senior German official said on Tuesday that if Germany continues to ignore requests to help track extremist content, Germany should order the removal of the messaging program Telegram from Apple and Google’s app stores.

Telegram has been accused in Germany of contributing to the increasingly vicious subculture of anti-vaccine conspiracy theorists, exchanging news about so-called dangers and arranging protests that have turned violent.

The application claims that it will not succumb to “government censorship”, so it is becoming more and more popular with activists and protesters, especially on platforms such as Facebook to make more active efforts to combat pressure from the government to spread lies, threats or conspiracy theories When reacting. Telegram did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Last month, a group of protesters held a torch rally outside the home of the Minister of the Interior of Saxony, which was widely regarded as a hidden threat of violence against her.

The Minister of the Interior of Lower Saxony, Boris Pistorius, told Der Spiegel: “What happened in the Telegram group and channels violated the compliance of Apple and Google, which offered it in their stores. Sex rules.” “We must urgently talk to them and persuade them to stop sending telegrams,” he added.

Germany has some of the strictest social media network compliance rules in the world, forcing them to respond quickly to reports of extremist content.

But according to its website, Telegram was founded in St. Petersburg and is now headquartered in Dubai. It did not respond to a request from the German Ministry of Justice to help track authors of extremist content.

The app claims to be a liberal alternative to other messengers and social networks. It has also gained a loyal following among opposition activists in authoritarian countries such as Belarus and Russia, who value its ability to evade state censorship.

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