Turkey blocks Instagram after ‘censorship’ of Hamas leader posts
Istanbul (Quds News Network)- Turkey’s internet regulator blocked access to Instagram after a top government official criticised the social media platform for “censorship” of posts related to Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh’s assassination.
According to the Turkish national communications authority, “instagram.com has been blocked by a decision on the date of 02/08/2024”, without giving a reason for the move.
However, the decision follows comments on Wednesday by Turkish communications official Fahrettin Altun, criticizing the platform for what he called its decision to block condolence posts on the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh.
“This is censorship, pure and simple,” Altun wrote on X, noting that Instagram had not cited any policy violations for its decision to block the content.
“We will continue to defend freedom of expression against these platforms, which have repeatedly shown that they serve the global system of exploitation and injustice,” Altun said.
“We will stand by our Palestinian brothers at every opportunity and on every platform,” he said.
Malaysia’s Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim also condemned Meta for deleting his Facebook post about the assassination of Haniyeh.
The removed post included a recording of Anwar’s phone call with a Hamas official, during which he expressed his condolences over Haniyeh’s assassination.
“Let this serve as a clear and unequivocal message to Meta: Cease this display of cowardice,” Anwar declared on Facebook.
Meta has designated the Palestinian group Hamas as a “dangerous organization” and prohibits content that praises it.
Malaysia’s Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil has said he has asked META for an explanation as to why the Facebook post by the Prime Minister was removed from the platform.
Meta has yet to respond, Fadzil told reporters.
Hamas and Iran have accused Israel of being responsible for the attack on Haniyeh’s residence in Tehran, although Israel has not claimed responsibility, yet.
The Palestinian group Hamas confirmed on Wednesday morning the assassination of the head of its political bureau Haniyeh in a “treacherous Zionist raid on his residence.”
Haniyeh had traveled to Tehran to attend Tuesday’s inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. This visit marked Haniyeh’s final public appearance.
Iranian media reported that Haniyeh was killed by an “airborne guided projectile” that hit the residence where he was staying in the north of the capital Tehran at about 2am local time (22:30 GMT on Tuesday) at a special residence for military veterans.
Following the announcement of Haniyeh’s murder, many people quickly took to Facebook to mourn and eulogize him. However, moments after posting, they were surprised to find that Facebook demanded the removal of their posts, threatening penalties such as bans on posting or sharing content.
Do not stop talking about Palestine! Raise your voice for Palestine via META which is traumendically afraid of honoruble people as Haniyeh’s picture!! #MetaCencorship
— Bir okur (@_bir_okur_) July 31, 2024
Ismail Haniyeh fought fearlessly and was martyred with honor. Surely his blood is as precious as the blood of a Palestinian child! Let the META, which cannot even bear the photo of his dead body, know that we will not kneel down! #MetaCencorship
— İkbal 🍉💙 (@ikbl_akyzz) July 31, 2024
Do not stop talking about Palestine! Raise your voice for Palestine via META which is traumendically afraid of honoruble people as Haniyeh’s picture! #MetaCencorship pic.twitter.com/5aBfkJRChV
— Ahmet Faruk Asa (@AhmetFarukAsa) July 31, 2024
Supporters of the Palestinian cause have faced challenges with Meta’s administration since Israel began its aggression on Gaza on October 7. Many posts showing solidarity with Gaza have been removed.
