San Francisco - (AFP) - A California court on Friday rejected a complaint filed by former US President Donald Trump against Twitter to allow him to return to this social network, which he was banned from using on charges of incitement to violence in January 2021.

The Republican billionaire and the other complainants accuse Twitter of violating their right to freedom of expression guaranteed in the US Constitution.

Judge James Donato California said, "The complainants are not in a position of strength because Twitter is a private company and the first clause of the Constitution applies only to restrictions on freedom of expression imposed by the government (..)".

Al-Qadi added that Twitter's internal system "gives it contractual permission to move as it wishes with regard to any account or content, for whatever reason or even without reason."

Donald Trump was banned from major social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, after his supporters attacked the Capitol building on January 6, 2021, which he is accused of inciting.

These platforms justified their decision by the risks of new incitement to violence.

Before his expulsion from Twitter, the US president had about 89 million subscribers. He used to go to them daily between presidential announcements and attacks on political opponents.

Donald Trump has asked the court to consider Chapter 230 of the 1996 law that protects Internet hosts from prosecution related to content published by third parties, unconstitutional.

However, the judge considered that this matter is not possible unless the complainants prove that they have been wronged.

The decision came as Elon Musk entered into an agreement with the Twitter board of directors to buy the California-based company at a price of $44 billion.

Musk, the owner of Tesla and SpaceX, announced that he intends to turn Twitter into a den for freedom of expression within the framework of the freedoms stipulated in the law, but with less stringent content controls than is the case now.

Like many in conservative circles, he considers that Twitter uses censorship.

However, Trump stated a short time ago to American media that he does not intend to return to Twitter, even if Elon Musk directed him to do so. He has launched his own network called "Truth Social".

The judge left the door open for an amended complaint to take into account his comments.