Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Lebanese President: Israeli aggression on Blida took place in aftermath of meeting of ceasefire monitoring committee.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun asks Commander of Lebanese Army to confront any Israeli incursion into liberated Lebanese territory in the South.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Israeli aircraft launch series of strikes on area of Jarmaq, South Lebanon.
Reuters: Afghanistan and Pakistan agree to restart peace talks in Istanbul.
Al-Mayadeen's correspondent in southern Lebanon: Israeli occupation forces withdraw from the Blida municipality building two hours after occupying it, and the Lebanese army enters
Pakistani army: 6 soldiers and 7 militants killed in clash near the Afghan border
Israeli media: Sirens sound in the settlement of Kerem Shalom in the Gaza envelope area
Afghan source to Al Mayadeen: We still believe in dialogue and prioritize diplomatic solutions with Pakistan; though we are ready for all possibilities.
Afghan source to Al Mayadeen: Pakistan purposely obstructed negotiations in Turkey by making unrealistic demands.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: More than 70 martyrs in Israeli attacks on Gaza since dawn.

Twitter employee accused of spying for KSA heads to trial

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 21 Jul 2022 11:16
4 Min Read

The case demonstrated the Kingdom's zeal in chasing out dissidents, and the timing is critical for US-Saudi relations.

  • x
  • Twitter employee accused of spying for KSA heads to trial.
    Twitter employee accused of spying for KSA heads to trial.

From 2013 until 2015, Ahmad Abouammo was in charge of promoting the Twitter accounts of celebrities, journalists, and other significant personalities in the Middle East. 

However, the Justice Department says he abused his access to Twitter user data, obtaining personal information from political dissidents and passing it on to Saudi Arabia in exchange for a costly watch and hundreds of thousands of dollars.

He is scheduled to attend a trial in federal court in San Francisco this week on charges of working as an agent of a foreign authority inside the United States, conducting wire fraud and laundering money.

“We look forward to vindicating Abouammo and for him to have his day in court,” said Angela Chuang, a lawyer representing him. The government expects Abouammo’s legal team to argue that he worked lawfully as a consultant to Saudi Arabia, according to a court filing. Chuang declined to comment on legal strategy.
 
The case, which demonstrates the Saudi government's zeal in obtaining information about its detractors, is happening at a critical juncture in US-Saudi diplomacy.

US-KSA diplomatic struggle

The allegations resurfaced in light of President Biden's first visit to the country, which he had previously sworn to make a "pariah", last week, in the hopes of establishing better Saudi-Israeli relations and relief from high gas prices.

Biden met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) and other Saudi officials. Human rights campaigners, meanwhile, slammed the visit, accusing the President of ignoring the death of Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post journalist killed by Saudi operatives in 2018.

Related News

US advances Gaza security force plan amid fragile ceasefire

Trump nuclear test threat risks escalating tensions with China: NYT

#ElonMusk has threatened to walk away from his $44 billion buyout deal for #Twitter Inc if the social media company fails to provide data on spam and fake accounts. pic.twitter.com/NVq1aSGNhi

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) June 7, 2022

Twitter tightens employee access

Twitter has stated that it has reduced employee access to user data since Abouammo's departure in 2015, but the firm continued to face security issues. Hackers used the accounts of notable people, including Elon Musk, to promote a cryptocurrency hoax in 2020.

Twitter agreed to pay a $150 million fine in May to settle allegations that it deceived users about how it handled their personal data. Twitter informed users that it was collecting their email addresses and phone numbers to protect their accounts, but that the information was also used to assist marketers to target advertisements.

What are Abouammo and Alzabarah accused of? 

Abouammo and another former Twitter employee, Ali Alzabarah, were charged in 2019. According to the Justice Department, the individuals exploited their Twitter accounts to gather information about thousands of people, which they then provided to Ahmed Almutairi, who the department claims served as their go-between with Saudi officials.

It is worth mentioning that Almutairi previously owned a social media marketing firm that provided services to the Saudi royal family.

According to the Justice Department, the men obtained "private user data, such as device identifiers, phone numbers, and IP addresses, all of which may have been utilized by the Saudi government to identify and locate the individuals behind the accounts, including political dissidents."

Read next: Twitter fined in US for selling users' data

The Justice Department reported that when Twitter management approached Alzabarah, he fled to Saudi Arabia. He and Almutairi are still wanted by US authorities. However, Abouammo was detained in Seattle in 2019 after briefly working at Amazon after quitting Twitter. He is out on bail, but he came to San Francisco Bay Area for trial.

According to persons familiar with the case, one of the 6,000 Twitter accounts that Alzabarah is suspected of looking at on behalf of Saudi officials in 2015 belonged to Omar Abdulaziz, a famous Saudi dissident and confidant of Khashoggi. According to his lawyers and court records, Abdulaziz has sued Twitter for the breach, and the issue is currently in mediation.

“The problem is bigger than Abouammo,” said Behnam Gharagozli, Abdulaziz's lawyer. “The problem is systemic here. The problem is the way the data was handled back then.”

  • United States
  • Ahmad Abouammo
  • Mohammed Bin Salman
  • Ali Alzabarah
  • Twitter
  • Joe Biden
  • Saudi Arabia

Most Read

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

'Israel’s Digital Iron Dome: Weaponizing the web against Palestine

  • Technology
  • 24 Oct 2025
Arab League chief exposes secret US deal shielding 'Israel’s' nukes

Arab League chief exposes secret US deal shielding 'Israel’s' nukes

  • Politics
  • 27 Oct 2025
Hi-tech holocaust: Microsoft’s role in Gaza genocide

Microsoft's role in world’s first AI-driven genocide, in Gaza, exposed

  • Technology
  • 28 Oct 2025
What Marr evidently didn't seem to understand was that Hedges isn't saying that Western journalists manipulate the truth, but that they systematically amplify Israeli narratives they know are false. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)

Western journalists know they have a case to answer for their betrayal of Gaza, and it frightens them

  • Opinion
  • 24 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
An undated photo of US Air Force personnel from the 576th Flight Test Squadron Missile Handling Team installing a cable raceway on an intercontinental ballistic missile at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California (Staff Sgt Jonathan Snyder/US Air Force)
Politics

Trump nuclear test threat risks escalating tensions with China: NYT

Displaced Palestinians walk along the coastal road near Wadi Gaza in the central Gaza Strip, moving toward northern Gaza, Friday, Octtober. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Politics

US advances Gaza security force plan amid fragile ceasefire

Sam Altman, co-founder and chief executive officer, OpenAI, listens to testimony during a Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing, Thursday, May 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)
Technology

OpenAI prepares for historic IPO targeting $1 trillion valuation

'Israel' approves illegal settlement expansion in occupied al-Quds
Politics

'Israel' approves illegal settlement expansion in occupied al-Quds

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS