Turkey blocks Instagram after posts about slain Hamas leader were removed

Aug. 2 (UPI) -- Turkey's Information and Communication Technologies Authority said Friday Instagram was blocked in the country.

The authority did not provide a reason for the decision but reports from local media including the Daily Sabah linked the decision to Instagram's removal of condolence posts about assassinated Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.

"Instagram.com has been blocked by the decision of the Information Technologies and Communication Authority dated 02/08/2024 and numbered 490.05.01.2024.-608983," a statement on the authority's website said.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was among those who offered condolences for Haniyeh and denounced "Zionist barbarity."

"May God have mercy on my brother Ismail Haniyeh, fallen in martyrdom after this odious attack," he wrote.

Turkey's presidential spokesman Fahrettin Altun posted on X about Haniyeh's killing calling the Hamas leader a great hero and speaking out against the posts being taken down.

"I also strongly condemn the social media platform Instagram which is actively preventing people from posting messages of condolences for the passing of Hamas leader Haniyeh without citing any policy violations," Altun said. "This is censorship, pure and simple."

Altun said Turkey will "defend freedom of speech against these platforms that have showed many times that they are primarily in the service of global exploitative system of injustice. We will stand with our Palestinian brothers and sisters in every opportunity and in every platform."

Yaman Akdeniz ,Turkish digital rights activist and Professor of Law at the Human Rights Law Research Center at Intsanbul's Nilgi University, posted on X, "The censorship applied to Instagram is arbitrary and can never have any explanation or justification. No judge should approve such a request."

He added that Instagram was blocked at around 3 a.m. "Instagram was blocked from access by the BTK in Turkey at around 03:00 this morning with an administrative measure decision. The decision was requested either by the Presidency or a ministry. BTK must have its decision approved by a criminal court of peace. We are following."