ISLAMABAD: The interior ministry has yet to permit access to major social media networks, although mobile data connections were resumed late on Friday night, access to social media platforms is still prohibited in the country.
The government shut down mobile internet on May 9 and blocked Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube where footage of vandalism were being shared as violent riots erupted after PTI Chairman Imran Khan was arrested.
On Friday, four days after the limitations had been put in place, the interior ministry gave the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) the go-ahead to remove them in response to intense pressure from many sources.
The mobile internet services resumed at around 10pm, but Twitter and other social media websites remained inaccessible even on Sunday.
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According to the telecommunication authority officials, the restriction on Twitter was never lifted as the ministry had directed the regulator to not open the platform.
A senior information ministry official, on the condition of anonymity, said the government feared that the social media platform “will be used for political mileage by the opposition”.
