Social media blocked in Turkey as Erdogan critics hold protest rallies: Global internet monitor

Access to major online platforms including X (formerly Twitter), YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and WhatsApp has been restricted across several networks in Turkey, global internet monitor Netblocks said on Monday.

The curbs coincided with calls by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) for rallies in Istanbul, after police erected barricades around its provincial headquarters.

According to Turkey’s Freedom of Expression Association, internet access issues began at 2045 GMT on Sunday, with bandwidth throttled for multiple platforms. The group monitors local censorship online.

Turkey’s Access Providers Union, which enforces blocking orders, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The CHP, facing a months-long legal crackdown targeting hundreds of its members, described the police barricades as a “siege.” Among those charged is Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, President Tayyip Erdogan’s chief political rival, whose arrest in March sparked the country’s largest protests in a decade.

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The latest action against the party came last week, when a court ordered the removal of its Istanbul provincial head over alleged irregularities in a 2023 congress.

Speaking at a CHP event in Istanbul, party chairman Ozgur Ozel urged unity against the measures: “From here, I invite all democrats and CHP members whom my words and voice reach to, to protect the home of Ataturk in Istanbul,” he said, referring to modern Turkey’s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.