- Pakistan’s interior ministry has confirmed restrictions on access to social media platform X for national security concerns during February’s national election.
- The Ministry emphasised that the decision to temporarily block X was informed by a confidential report from Pakistan’s Intelligence and Security Agency (ISA), which highlighted the presence of “hostile elements” on the platform aimed at fomenting chaos and instability.
- Despite repeated attempts to engage with X, formerly known as Twitter, on the matter, the platform had purportedly exhibited reluctance in resolving the issues raised.
Pakistan’s interior ministry has confirmed it restricted access to social media platform X for national security concerns in a submission to the Islamabad High Court on Wednesday.
The ministry’s court submission stated that “the failure of Twitter/X to adhere to the lawful directives of the government of Pakistan and address concerns regarding the misuse of its platform necessitated the imposition of a ban,” according to Reuters.
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Shutdown during the national election
Pakistani users experienced access problems during February’s national election, held on February 8, which was marred by allegations of rigging, especially on the eve of the polls, from the party led by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
The government has remained silent on the matter until a court urged to reconsider the ban within a week, as highlighted by Abdul Moiz Jafri, a petitioner and advocate involved in the case.
The Ministry emphasised that the decision to temporarily block X was informed by a confidential report from Pakistan’s Intelligence and Security Agency (ISA), which highlighted the presence of “hostile elements” on the platform aimed at fomenting chaos and instability.
The continued use of X by government officials, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, suggests that many have resorted to virtual private network (VPN) software to circumvent the restrictions imposed.
Despite repeated attempts to engage with X on the matter, the platform had purportedly exhibited reluctance in resolving the issues raised.
