Access to social media and messaging platforms in Turkey remained severely restricted on Monday, more than 12 hours after police blockaded the İstanbul headquarters of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), according to internet watchdogs, Turkish Minute reported.
The Freedom of Expression Association (İFÖD) said bandwidth throttling began at 23:45 local time on Sunday and continued into Monday, affecting X, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal. The restrictions have disrupted daily communications for millions of users, particularly as schools reopened nationwide.
Yaman Akdeniz, an internet law expert and co-founder of İFÖD, said on X that including WhatsApp in the restrictions “seriously impacts the private communications of all citizens, especially on the first day of the school year.”
Bandwidth throttling — the deliberate slowing of internet traffic by service providers — is a recurring tool used by Turkish authorities during politically sensitive events. NetBlocks, a London-based digital rights group, confirmed that real-time measurements showed multiple platforms restricted across several networks after the CHP headquarters was surrounded by police and the party called for rallies.
The measures came amid a deepening standoff between authorities and the opposition. On Sunday riot police sealed off the CHP’s provincial office in İstanbul ahead of the arrival of a court-appointed trustee, days after a civil court annulled the party’s 2023 provincial congress and dismissed its elected board. The CHP has appealed the decision and vowed to resist what it calls a “judicial coup.”
