Pakistan bans Wikipedia over blasphemous content

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan on Friday blocked Wikipedia services in the country after the encyclopedia giant failed to remove blasphemous content.

Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) confirmed the action in wake of the website's rebuttal to remove blasphemous material; the development comes days after the telecom regulator degraded the portal's services in the country of over 220 million.

The stern action comes in wake of the sacrilegious content available on the site and the 2-day deadline ends, a PTA spokesperson told a media outlet.

Officials are willing to unblock the platform if the objectionable content is removed,the spokesperson said.

Earlier, the telecom regulator shared a tweet, saying the intentional failure on the part of the platform to comply with the directions of PTA, the services of Wikipedia have been degraded for 48 hours with the direction to block/remove the reported contents.

Several countries including China, Iran, Myanmar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Venezuela have banned Wikipedia over the time in wake of violations by the portal.

As right-wing parties and supporters hailed the move, it irked several social media users who vented out anger, questioning the incumbent government’s priorities at a time when the country is facing the worst economic crisis.

The platform is among the top visited sites in the country as many students, researchers, and professionals rely on it for sourcing information.

Pakistan degrades Wikipedia services for 48 hours over sacrilegious content