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Banned Twitter Account Restoration Consideration "Soon" - Musk

FILE: New Twitter owner Elon Musk uses a sink as a prop in this promotional picture taken October 26, 2022 in San Francisco.

New Twitter owner Elon Musk said Wednesday that it will be "a few more weeks" before any banned accounts -- such as that of former US president Donald Trump -- may be restored on the platform.

The potential reinstatement of such accounts banned for violating the site's content moderation rules has been seen as a bellwether of where Musk, a self-described "free speech absolutist," wants to take the site he describes as a global town square.

But on Wednesday the South African-born billionaire said the wait will have to continue a little longer.

"Twitter will not allow anyone who was de-platformed for violating Twitter rules back on platform until we have a clear process for doing so, which will take at least a few more weeks," he tweeted.

Musk also said he had talked to civil society leaders "about how Twitter will continue to combat hate & harassment & enforce its election integrity policies."

On Tuesday, Musk said the site will charge $8 per month to verify users' accounts, a move observers say is meant to control the presence of "bots" - computers programmed to spew forth comments on social media.

Musk's tweet about banned accounts was in response to a post from the company's head of safety, Yoel Roth, on Twitter's efforts to combat disinformation ahead of the November 8 U.S. midterm elections.

"We're staying vigilant against attempts to manipulate conversations about the 2022 US midterms," Roth said.

Former President Donald Trump, once a prolific tweeter, was banned from Twitter soon after the January 6, 2021 riot that sacked the U.S. Capitol building.

Twitter users have been watching closely to see whether Musk will reinstate Trump.

The potential reinstatement of His and other accounts banned for violating the site's content moderation rules has been seen as a bellwether of where Musk, a self-described "free speech absolutist," wants to take the site he describes as a global town square.