Turkey blocks access to Instagram

ISTANBUL: Turkey blocked access to the Instagram social media network on Friday, without giving any official explanation, following censorship accusations against the US company from a high-ranking Turkish official.

Many users living in Turkey complained on the X platform that they could not refresh their Instagram feed, an issue verified by AFP journalists.

The BTK communications authority announced on its website on Friday that the Meta-owned platform had been blocked.

It did not give a reason but a BTK official told Turkish media it was because of “criminal content” on Instagram that the latter had been asked to withdraw.

The president´s communications director, Fahrettin Altun, had on Wednesday accused Instagram of censure, saying it was “preventing people from publishing messages of condolence for the martyr Haniyeh”.

“This is a very clear and obvious attempt at censure,” Altun said on X.

An anonymous BTK source denied the move was due to Instagram blocking posts about Haniyeh, telling website Medyascope that it was over “insults to Ataturk”, the founding father of modern Turkey, and “crimes” including “drug games (and) paedophilia”.

He said the platform would be blocked permanently if it didn´t resolve the problem.

According to Turkish media, 50 million of the country´s 85 million people have an Instagram account.

Digital law expert Yaman Akdeniz said the decision had likely been taken either by the president´s office or by a government ministry. He said BTK needed to get the decision approved by a judge and it was unlikely a judge would approve it.