The social media platform X plans to end its operations in Brazil, citing a government censorship order putting pressure on the company’s employees.

The company, owned by billionaire Elon Musk, said in a statement over the weekend that its platform will remain available to the Brazilian people despite the company’s physical departure from the country.

The company’s exit is the latest clash between Mr. Musk’s view of internet freedom and governments that have bemoaned what they view as the platform’s role in spreading misinformation.

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Mr. Musk shared the company’s official statement on his personal X account Monday.

“A reminder that free speech in America is special and we need to do everything possible to preserve it,” Mr. Musk said.

X’s global government affairs team published a court order it said was issued in secret. The government affairs team said Brazilian judge Alexandre de Moraes threatened X’s legal representative with arrest if the company failed to comply.

“As a result, to protect the safety of our staff, we have made the decision to close our operation in Brazil, effective immediately,” X said via its global government affairs account on Saturday. “The X service remains available to the people of Brazil.”

The Brazilian government responded with outrage. Secretary of Digital Policies João Brant said on X that the company’s employees were not in danger.

“As the court order published by Twitter/X itself shows, the company has been ignoring court orders and evading subpoenas,” Mr. Brant said, according to an English-language translation. “A pathetic attitude for a company that controls this platform with the size it has in Brazil.”

Mr. Musk, however, appears to relish the spat with the Brazilian officials. He labeled the judge a tyrant, posted a meme comparing the judge to the fictional villain Voldemort and said the judge needs to quit.

Despite his combative flair, the billionaire tech mogul said packing up his team in Brazil was not a choice he made lightly.

“The decision to close the X office in Brazil was difficult, but, if we had agreed to @alexandre’s (illegal) secret censorship and private information handover demands, there was no way we could explain our actions without being ashamed,” Mr. Musk said on Saturday.

Mr. Musk said on X that he was forced to close up shop because following the order would have required his company to violate laws in the U.S., Argentina, Brazil, and elsewhere.