Turkey has blocked access to Instagram as of Friday, following the removal of posts by Turkish users that expressed condolences for Ismail Haniyeh, a Hamas leader recently killed.
The Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK), which oversees internet regulation in Turkey, did not initially disclose the reason for this action. However, media reports suggest the ban is a reaction to Instagram’s decision to remove posts related to Haniyeh. Fahrettin Altun, Turkey’s presidential communications director, condemned Instagram’s actions as “censorship,” criticizing the platform for not specifying any policy violations.
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Instagram, which has over 50 million users in Turkey, has yet to comment on the situation. This block marks another instance of Turkey’s increasing control over social media platforms.
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