This picture taken in Istanbul on August 2, 2024, shows a web page of the Instagram application after it was blocked by Turkish authorities. Turkey on August 2, 2024 blocked access to the Instagram social media network, the national communications authority said without explanation, following censorship accusations against the US company by a high-ranking official. AFP
Instagram, which has been suspended in Turkey since Friday, has been accused by the authorities both of censorship and of failing to remove posts the authorities deemed offensive.
The freeze has harmed business for telecoms operators and vendors who sell goods via the platform.
Private television channel NTV said representatives in Turkey of the platform, which is owned by Facebook parent Meta, would meet Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu at 1:00 pm (1000 GMT).
"We will meet them this afternoon. We hope they will do what's necessary to respond to our demands. We're hoping for positive developments," Uraloglu said on X.
The minister said he had blocked access to Instagram because of "content-related offences", without giving details.
"Last week there was a meeting with representatives of the platform, in which we set out our views on respect for Turkish laws," he continued.
For many Turkish businesses, Monday's meeting cannot come soon enough.
An estimated 50-60 million of Turkey's 85 million inhabitants subscribe to Instagram, which serves as a platform for a wide range of commercial activities.
This is not the first time that Turkish authorities have temporarily blocked access to social media sites, including Facebook, X and Wikipedia.
Erdogan's government is regularly accused of muzzling freedom of expression.
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