Kanye West returns to Twitter after two-year absence

Elon Musk welcomes the rapper back to the platform

West has faced criticism for his political views from fellow Twitter users. AFP

Kanye West posted on Twitter for the first time in nearly two years on Saturday and received a welcome from Tesla chief Elon Musk. whose deal to buy the platform has been resurrected in recent days.

West, who now goes by Ye, late on Friday posted a photograph of a hat with “2024" printed on the skip. He followed that with picture of himself with Meta Platforms chief Mark Zuckerberg, accusing the latter of kicking him off Instagram.

Before this week, the rapper and businessman last posted on Twitter in November 2020, just after the US presidential elections.

He had received a temporary ban from the social network for posting private information of another individual, and also faced criticism from other Twitter users for his political views.

West was temporarily banned from Instagram for posts that were deemed to have harassed others.

Mr Musk responded to West, saying “Welcome back to Twitter, my friend.” The Tesla chief this week reinstated his $44 billion offer to buy Twitter, saying he wants to create an “everything app” that could rival TikTok and WeChat.

Mr Musk's lawyer sent a letter to Twitter this week saying his client will complete the deal as long as he lines up the promised debt financing and provided that the Delaware Chancery Court drops Twitter's lawsuit against him.

The businessman has said he will prioritise free speech on Twitter and criticised its decision to ban individuals such as former US president Donald Trump for violating its rules.