Did Islamic State Just Promise to Kill Twitter Cofounder?

The radical group relies heavily on Twitter to wage its propagandistic and recruitment campaign.

Twitter has confirmed that the company's security team is investigating a death threat apparently issued by the Islamic State against Jack Dorsey, who co-founded the microblogging service, and other Twitter employees for deleting accounts affiliated with the brutal Islamist group.

"We told you from the beginning it's not your war, but you didn't get it and kept closing our accounts on Twitter, but we always come back," said a message posted on an anonymous online website that has been frequented by the Islamic State to spread its propaganda.

"But when our lions [brave men] come and take your breath, you will never come back to life," the message added. The post was also accompanied by an image of Dorsey in the cross sights of a rifle.

The radical group relies heavily on Twitter and other online tools to wage its propagandistic and recruitment campaign. In the fall, as many as 45,000 Twitter accounts were part of a sophisticated network spreading Islamist content online.

The Islamic State's network on Twitter has suffered a heavy blow since then. As many as 18,000 accounts affiliated with the militants were suspended in recent months in a virtual counteroffensive. However, these efforts will only be successful if Twitter does not back down under pressure.