Spain hits back at Pavel Durov over mass Telegram post on social media ban plan

2026-02-05 - 13:55

Founder’s extraordinary intervention has laid bare rising tensions between European governments and tech firms Europe live – latest updates Spain has accused Pavel Durov of “spreading lies” and seeking to undermine democratic institutions after the Telegram founder used the messaging app to attack government plans to introduce a social media ban for under-16s and to hold tech companies responsible for hateful and harmful content. Durov’s extraordinary public intervention – which came a day after Elon Musk called Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, a “true fascist totalitarian” over the proposed measures – reveals the rapidly escalating tensions between European governments and powerful global technology chiefs. Continue reading...