Social media restored after brief blockade
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan restored Facebook, Twiter and several other social media apps on Friday ater blocking them for about five hours on security grounds amid a crackdown against a violent group, officials said.
“In order to maintain public order and safety, access to certain social media applications has been restricted temporarily,” a senior telecommunications authority official told said earlier, without specifying which social media.
The interior ministry said in a statement the block would last until 1500 local time (1000 GMT) and applied to Youtube, Facebook, Whatsapp, Twiter, Telegram and Tiktok.
“Access to social media applications has been restored,” the telecom authority said in a later statement.
The decision was taken to deprive the proscribed Tehrik-e-labbaik Pakistan (TLP) of the easy communication facility to organise protests ater Friday prayers.
Meanwhile, in a hand-writen message, detained TLP chief Saad Rizvi as the members of the party’s consultative council not to indulge in any illegal activity and call off their protest demonstration and sit-in immediately.
“All protest demonstrations and roadblocks should be immediately called off. All workers should return to their homes in a peaceful manner,” the message read.
“Full co-operation must be extended to the law enforcement agencies. The protest demonstration and sit-in staged in front of
Masjid Rehmatul Alimeen should also be called off immediately.” The TLP resorted to violent protests across Pakistan ater Rizvi’s arrest four days back in which three persons including policemen were killed.
On Thursday, the federal government proscribed the TLP under the Anti-terrorism Act, which entails severe penalties for the office-bearers and activists of the banned oufit.
At least four policemen have been killed in three days of violence, according to the country’s information minister.
Nearly 600 people have been wounded, with 200 in critical condition, he said. TLP is demanding that the government expel the French ambassador and endorse a boycot of French products ater the publication of cartoons in France depicting the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH).
For Muslims, depictions of the Prophet are blasphemous.