Turkiye has blocked access to the social media platform Instagram, according to its national communications authority, as reported by Al Jazeera. The decision comes after a top government official criticized Instagram for “censoring” Hamas-related content.
In a post on its website, the communications authority stated that “instagram.com has been blocked by a decision dated 02/08/2024,” without providing a reason.
On Wednesday, the country’s Communications Director, Fahrettin Altun, accused the social media platform of blocking condolence posts related to the death of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh, as reported by Al Jazeera. Altun also accused Israel of attempting to create further turmoil in the region through killings and covert operations.
In a post on X, Altun condemned Instagram for preventing users from posting condolences for Haniyeh’s death, calling it a clear and blatant attempt at censorship. He stated, “We will continue to defend freedom of expression against these platforms, which have repeatedly shown they serve the global system of exploitation and injustice. We will stand by our Palestinian brothers at every opportunity and on every platform. Palestine will be free sooner or later. Israel and its supporters will not be able to prevent this.”
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On July 31, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reported that Hamas Political Bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh had been killed in an attack in Tehran, Iran. According to Press TV, a projectile struck a residence allocated to war veterans in Tehran at 2 a.m. (local time) on Wednesday, resulting in Haniyeh and one of his bodyguards being killed.
The IRGC’s statement read, “With condolences to the heroic nation of Palestine, the Islamic nation, the combatants of the Resistance Front, and the noble nation of Iran, this morning (Wednesday) the residence of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the political office of the Islamic Resistance of Hamas, was hit in Tehran, and as a result, he and one of his bodyguards were martyred.”
The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the killing of Ismail Haniyeh and offered condolences to the Palestinian people. It accused the Israeli government of lacking intentions to achieve peace and stated that the attack aimed to escalate the conflict in Gaza to a regional level. The ministry emphasized that Turkiye will continue to support the “just cause” of the Palestinian people.
In a statement, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “The Netanyahu Government’s lack of intention to achieve peace has been demonstrated once again. This attack is also aimed at spreading the war in Gaza to a regional level. If the international community does not act to stop Israel, our region will face an even greater conflict.”