Elon Musk says banned Twitter account will take "a few more weeks" to reinstate

San Francisco: Elon Musk, the newly appointed owner of Twitter, stated on Wednesday that it will be "a few more weeks" before any banned accounts, including the one belonging to former US President Donald Trump, may be reinstated on the service.

Twitter users have been waiting in anticipation to see if Musk will unblock Trump, who was banned for instigating a mob attack on the Capitol last year in an effort to rig the 2020 election, and other de-platformed users, AFP reported.

One indicator of where Musk, a self-described "free speech absolutist," intends to take the website, which he characterises as a global town square, is the potential reinstatement of such accounts that were banned for breaking the site's content moderation guidelines.

The South African billionaire, though, stated on Wednesday that the wait will need to last a little longer.

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

That indicates following the crucial American midterm elections on November 8, which will determine which party controls Congress. Trump, who was once a frequent tweeter and still has significant sway over the Republican Party, has opened his 2020 playbook by casting doubt on the validity of the upcoming election.

Trump has said he would be happier staying with his own Truth Social communications network ever since Musk took Twitter private last week.

The former president's network, however, is struggling financially, and many political strategists think it would be difficult for him to turn down the large audience and influence that would come with a return to Twitter, where he was once one of the site's most popular global figures.

The news comes just days after the richest man in the world acquired sole control of the social media behemoth in a contentious $44 billion merger, promising to reduce content regulation.

The announcement was released just days after the world's richest man completed a contentious $44 billion merger that gave him entire control of the social media giant with a pledge to loosen content regulation.

Yoel Roth, the company's head of safety, had posted on Twitter about the company's efforts to counteract misinformation before the elections when Elon Musk tweeted in response.

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

Musk said that he had discussed "how Twitter will continue to combat hate & harassment & enforce its election integrity policies" with leaders of civil society.

Musk announced on Tuesday that the website will charge customers $8 per month to verify their accounts.