Access to Instagram in Turkey was restored late on Sunday night after being blocked for over a week. The social media platform, which boasts more than 57 million users in the country of 85 million, was previously inaccessible under orders from the Turkish authorities.
On August 2nd, the Information and Communication Technologies Authority ordered the blockage of Instagram without providing a clear reason. Later, government officials explained that the ban was due to the platform’s failure to comply with local laws.
Turkey’s Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Abdulkadir Uraloglu, announced on social media platform X that after discussions with Instagram representatives, they received assurances that their demands, particularly those concerning criminal activities, would be met. “We have been promised cooperation on how to address users involved in such activities,” Uraloglu stated.
He also shared a video on X, declaring that accounts affiliated with “terrorist” organizations would be banned, and any content promoting these groups would be removed. Uraloglu specifically mentioned the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) operating in northern Syria, and the so-called Fethullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ).
The PKK is a Kurdish militant group that has waged an armed struggle since the late 1970s to establish a Kurdish state in parts of Turkey, Iraq, Syria, and Iran. Turkish officials claim that the PYD is an offshoot of the PKK. FETÖ is a movement led by Fethullah Gülen, a former ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, whom the government accuses of orchestrating the failed coup attempt in 2016.
According to We Are Social Media, a digital marketing intelligence firm based in New York, Instagram plays a significant role in Turkey, with over 57 million users. The Association of E-Commerce Operators estimates that Instagram and other social media platforms generate approximately 930 million Turkish liras (over 25 million euros) in daily profits through e-commerce.
