Former ambassador sues Apple and Alphabet to drop Telegram from app stores

Former US Ambassador to Morocco Marc Ginsberg has sued Apple, demanding it remove the Telegram app from its App Store. According to the Jan. 17 lawsuit, the messaging app is used to help coordinate violence, extremism, racism and anti-Semitism.

“Telegram is being used to intimidate, threaten and coerce members of the public,” says Ginsberg’s complaint. The Coalition for a Safer Web is a co-plaintiff in the lawsuit.

Ginsberg’s complaint alleges that as a result of Telegram remaining on the App Store, he and others like him have faced economic losses and emotional distress as one of the groups being targeted by the app’s users. He has also reportedly sued Alphabet to get Telegram removed from the Google Play Store.

It follows Parler being removed from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store following the insurrection at the US Capitol on Jan. 6. 

“Telegram continues to enable extremist incitement in its platform, promoting political violence as extremist groups and individuals migrate to Telegram following Apple’s suspension of Parler,” the complaint alleges.

Apple, Google and Telegram didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.