And the Iraqi Ministry of Communications stated in a statement on Sunday, that “the blocking of the Telegram application came based on the directives of the higher authorities for determinants related to national security, and in order to preserve the personal data of citizens, which the aforementioned application violated the safety of dealing with it in violation of the law.” According to what was reported by “Agence France Presse”.
The ministry added that it had repeatedly asked the company to “manage the aforementioned application” and “to cooperate in closing the platforms that cause the leakage of data of official state institutions and citizens’ personal data, which poses a threat to Iraqi national security and societal peace.” However, “the company did not respond or interact with any of those requests.
The ministry said it “affirms its respect for citizens’ rights to freedom of expression and communication, without prejudice to the security of the state and its institutions.”
The Telegram application is widespread in Iraq, where it is used especially by media platforms close to pro-Iranian parties, to spread news.
The suspension of the application sparked anger among those platforms on the application, as one of these channels, which has more than 330,000 subscribers, considered the suspension of the application “a muzzling of mouths and a confiscation of freedoms.”
After decades of conflict and sectarian violence after the US invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein’s regime in 2003, Iraq has known relative stability despite the political conflicts and violence that shake the country from time to time. However, NGOs and activists say there are still restrictions on freedom of expression.
In July, Amnesty International expressed its concern about the Iraqi government’s submission of “two bills to Parliament that, if adopted, would severely restrict the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly of the Iraqi people,” namely the draft law on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, and the draft information crimes law.
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