Asmongold: Twitch streamer suspended after Palestinian rant

Well-known streamer Zach Hoyt, widely recognized as Asmongold, has faced a suspension from Twitch following his controversial statement in a video where he referred to Palestinians as originating from a "lesser culture."

Asmongold, who has more than five million followers across his two Twitch channels, issued an apology on X, saying, "I'll improve."

The account from which he posted the comments has been updated to show that it is "temporarily unavailable" due to a breach of community standards.

Twitch and Asmongold's team have been reached out to for their statements.

In videos that have been shared extensively on the internet, Asmongold expressed views indicating that he did not feel compassion for Palestinians who lost their lives in the conflict between Israel and Gaza.

On Monday, the United Nations criticized the significant number of civilian deaths resulting from Israeli attacks in northern Gaza.

According to the health ministry controlled by Hamas, over 42,000 Palestinians have lost their lives in the conflict that began on October 7, 2023.

Asmongold later took to X to say, "I apologize."

"Naturally, nobody should have their life ruined, even if they engage in behaviors or hold opinions that I consider outdated," he said.

"I'm totally okay with saying sorry when I genuinely believe I made a mistake."

Twitch's community rules specify that the streaming service prohibits any actions that support or incite discrimination.

It also prohibits streamers from creating content that displays an idea of inferiority linked to a protected characteristic.

Asmongold has received criticism from other Twitch streamers, including BrookeAB, who has 1.3 million followers on the platform. She described his remarks as "outright racist."

Hasan Piker, known as HasanAbi in the streaming world, had a conversation with Asmongold during a stream prior to the ban, but he stuck to his initial statements and didn't retract them.

During the same discussion, he mentioned that he did not back Israel.

Asmongold was live streaming on his Zachrawrr channel, where he frequently discusses current events and popular subjects. His channel boasts 1.9 million followers.

His second channel boasts 3.5 million subscribers, but it doesn't get updated as frequently.

Nevertheless, Twitch's community rules prohibit suspended users from accessing their other accounts during their ban.

Asmongold has yet to make any statements regarding the suspension.