Access to Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu’s X(formerly known as Twitter) account was blocked early Thursday (May 8). The mayor has been imprisoned since March 19th on alleged corruption charges described by the Turkish opposition as politically motivated.

Internet users in Turkey attempting to access the mayor’s account Thursday were met with the message “Account withheld: @ekrem_imamoglu has been withheld in TR in response to a legal demand.”

The final post on İmamoğlu’s account from Wednesday evening was an invitation from the mayor for supporters to join a rally held in Istanbul’s Beyazıt Square organized by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).

İmamoğlu’s X account remains accessible to users outside of Turkey. The account can also be accessed within the country by users with a VPN.

The Center for Countering Misinformation, which is part of Turkey’s Communications Ministry, released a statement saying İmamoğlu’s X account had been blocked on the grounds of “sharing posts not made by the mayor himself and with the intention of causing harm to the public”. The announcement also noted that the ban would remain in place until İmamoğlu is freed from prison.

A statement from the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor also cited the same grounds for the ban as the Communications Ministry, while also noting that İmamoğlu’s X account had served as a platform for........

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