Key facts
- X is complying with a Turkish court order to block Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu's presidential candidacy account.
- The account was created to support Imamoglu's candidacy for the next presidential election.
- X stated Turkish laws "force" compliance with the order, risking site throttling.
- X is challenging the order in court and sharing the court order.
- Imamoglu's main X account, with nearly 10 million followers, was previously blocked in Turkey in May 2025.
- Meta and YouTube have also complied with Turkish government requests to block accounts associated with Imamoglu.
Social media platform X announced it is challenging a Turkish court order to block access within Turkey to the presidential candidacy office account of jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. The account, created to support Imamoglu's bid for the next presidential election, was initially blocked in Turkey following a government request.
X stated in a post that Turkish laws "force" them to comply with the order, at risk of the country's Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) "throttling" the site's access. The company said it is challenging the order in court and sharing the court document for transparency. Imamoglu's main X account, which had nearly 10 million followers, was blocked in Turkey in May 2025 under a similar order, which X also contested.
Meta and YouTube have also complied with Turkish government requests to block accounts and content associated with Imamoglu. Yaman Akdeniz, founder of Turkish freedom of expression organisation IFOD, expressed skepticism about X's willingness to challenge Turkish authorities, noting that while appeals are sometimes made, they are selective. According to X's transparency report, the company acted on 86 percent of removal requests from Turkey between July and December 2024. A Washington Post review found X acted on 71 percent of legal requests in the first half of 2024, an increase from previous figures. Akdeniz stated that Meta and other platforms have become extensions of Turkish law enforcement.