Information
Turkey’s telecommunications regulator, BTK, blocked access to Instagram on August 2, 2024, without providing a specific reason or timeline for the ban. The restriction has led to widespread complaints from users in Turkey who reported issues with accessing and refreshing their Instagram feeds. The government’s decision to block the platform followed accusations that Instagram was censoring posts related to the death of Ismail Haniyeh, a political leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
The Turkish government’s spokesperson, Fahrettin Altun, criticized Instagram for allegedly preventing users from sharing messages of condolence for Haniyeh, describing the platform’s actions as censorship. Altun pointed out that Instagram had not cited any policy violations to justify its actions. As of now, Instagram’s parent company, Meta, has not responded to the ban or the Turkish government’s accusations.
Source: AFP, Reuters
So what
This is not the first time Turkey has blocked Western social media pages due to disagreement over content. While it is not clear if Meta did conduct such actions in this case, it is possible that Turkey is using this situation to crack down on the page’s influence in the country. Erdoğans government has been trying to limit the influence of these pages for years, particularly following the attempted coup in 2016. However, in the past, companies like Meta have been able to get the bans overturned in court.
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