A series of access blocks imposed in Turkey during the week of Oct. 5-11 targeted X accounts belonging to numerous journalists and news outlets, including bianet and Sky News correspondent Alex Crawford. The website of Mezopotamya Agency was blocked in its entirety about 30 minutes after the agency removed a news report that authorities had demanded be taken down.
At least 88 X accounts were blocked in Turkey on the night of Oct. 5 on grounds of "protecting national security and public order." According to the weekly Free Web monitoring bulletin published by the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA), the restrictions continued throughout the week, with journalists the most heavily affected. X made a significant number of the accounts inaccessible to users in Turkey.
The restrictions, part of a wave of censorship that began in mid-September, initially targeted the Freedom of Expression Association (İFÖD), retired judge Ömer Faruk Eminağaoğlu and journalists. Within days, they expanded to include other reporters, the EngelliWeb archive documenting access blocks, lawyers and financial commentators.
For most of the restrictions, neither the name of the court nor the decision number was disclosed. The stated justification points to Article 8/A of Turkey's Internet Law No. 5651, which allows access blocks to be imposed within hours.
The blocked accounts included those belonging to bianet, the Women's Party and journalists Hamdi Çelikbaş, Yiğit Uzun, İrfan Değirmenci, Şirin Payzın, Burak Acerakis, Erdal Sağlam, Dinçer Gökçe, Sarya Toprak, Esra Tokat, Furkan Karabay, Dilek Zaptçıoğlu and Ayça Yılmaz. Lawyer Lale Demirkazan's account was also blocked.
In addition, access was restricted to the accounts of dozens of writers, academics, financial commentators and activists.
The first wave of restrictions on Oct. 5 was followed by a second wave targeting at least 70 accounts the same day.
On Oct. 7, it emerged that 10 accounts belonging to journalists and media organizations had been blocked under a single decision issued by the Bakırköy 7th Criminal Judgeship of Peace on Sept. 30, numbered 2026/9064.
Two of the journalists had also faced account blocks on Sept. 16, but X had not implemented that decision. bianet's account had previously been blocked in March 2025. bianet said it had not been notified of the latest decision.
On Oct. 8, at least 39 additional accounts, with a combined following of approximately 465,000, were blocked. Stock market commentator Ayhan Dadaloğlu also lost access to a new account he had created after his original account was blocked on Oct. 3.
Siyasi Haber editor Mehmet Murat Yıldırım was also among those affected. X informed Yıldırım that his account had been restricted in Turkey because of an Article 8/A decision forwarded by the Cybersecurity Presidency. His previous account had also been blocked on March 25, 2025.
Foreign correspondent's account also blocked
The X account of Sky News correspondent Alex Crawford was made inaccessible in Turkey on Oct. 5.
The restriction was based on a Sept. 13 decision, numbered 2026/9112, issued by the Bakırköy 4th Criminal Judgeship of Peace as part of an "obscenity" investigation.
Crawford said restrictions on press freedom in Turkey were expanding and could widen further, adding that she had not been provided with details of the decision. Sky News said it opposed the decision "on principle."
The same day, a new X account created by DW Turkish reporter Alican Uludağ under the same username after his previous account was blocked was also restricted.
Mezopotamya Agency website blocked
The Ankara 1st Criminal Judgeship of Peace blocked the entire website of Mezopotamya Agency on Oct. 6 under decision No. 2026/13886.
Authorities initially ordered the agency to remove a single news report within four hours. The agency complied, but approximately 30 minutes later, its entire website was blocked.
The agency, which has faced access blocks repeatedly in the past, continues to publish through a new domain name.
A journalism organization condemned the restriction and called for its immediate removal.
T24 appeal rejected, three bianet news reports blocked
The Istanbul 2nd Criminal Judgeship of Peace on Oct. 9 rejected an appeal by independent news website T24 against an access block imposed on its website and social media accounts on Sept. 30.
The original restriction had been ordered by the Istanbul 1st Criminal Judgeship of Peace at the request of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.
T24 said it would take the decision to the Constitutional Court.
On Oct. 11, the Bakırköy 1st Criminal Judgeship of Peace blocked access to three bianet news reports concerning a fund crisis that has affected hundreds of thousands of investors since September and become the subject of a criminal investigation.
Two of the reports concerned questions submitted by opposition lawmaker and journalist Ahmet Şık to Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek. The third concerned a lawsuit filed against Şık by Justice Minister Akın Gürlek.
Authorities demanded that the reports be removed within four hours. No reasoned decision was provided.
Reactions and parliamentary scrutiny
International and Turkish journalists' unions issued a joint statement on Oct. 6 calling on X not to restrict the accounts of journalists and media organizations without an independent court order.
They also urged the platform to subject government requests to rigorous scrutiny, take action against specific posts rather than entire accounts, and be transparent about the requests it receives.
On Oct. 7, a small opposition party staged a protest outside the Constitutional Court, demanding the suspension of the implementation of a provision granting the Cybersecurity Presidency the authority to impose access blocks.
On Oct. 8, DEM Party lawmaker Nevroz Uysal Aslan asked Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz why Mezopotamya Agency's entire domain had been blocked after the requested news report had been removed and whether the agency would be able to access the reasoned decision.
Selçuk Özdağ, deputy parliamentary group chair of the New Path Group, also submitted parliamentary questions to Yılmaz and Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu on Oct. 9.
Özdağ asked who issued decisions under Article 8/A and on what legal grounds, and why entire accounts were being blocked instead of specific posts.
He also requested statistics on access restrictions imposed between Sept. 1 and Oct. 8.
