PTA suspends internet services across country for 'indefinite period'

Amid protests across country, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) have decided to extend suspension of internet services for an indefinite period.

A day earlier, the services were shutdown as protests erupted after Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s arrest in Al-Qadir Trust case.

The PTA confirmed today that the decision to block mobile broadband services was taken on the directives of the Ministry of Interior.

Moreover, many users are unable to access major social media sites including Twitter, Facebook and Instagram as these are reportedly down since yesterday.

Videos of violent protests were shared widely on social media platforms after unrest flared up following the former prime minister's arrest, after which mobile broadband services were blocked.

The PTA spokesperson had said that the regulatory authority was also receiving reports of social media platforms, including Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, being down. However, these reports could not be confirmed, she added.

Sources told Geo News that “unwarranted” clips of the protests were shared on social media after which various platforms started experiencing disruptions around 8pm on Tuesday, causing problems for citizens.

“With Pakistan already ranking among the world's worst countries in terms of Internet access, Tuesday's outage was nothing short of a shambolic turn of events. It is unfortunate that whenever the political climate in the country heats up, such a measure is viewed to be a necessity, when in truth it robs the people of the fundamental right of access to information that is guaranteed by law,” Sameen Daud Khan, a researcher who worked on Pakistan’s Internet Landscape 2022 report told TheNews.com.pk.

What happened?

Khan was arrested from the premises of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) a day earlier by Rangers personnel in connection with a warrant issued by the National Accountability Bureau in the Al-Qadir Trust case.

Following his arrest, the PTI urged supporters all across Pakistan to protest and "block all roads, close all shops".

Subsequently, PTI workers held protests in several cities, including Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Karachi, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Multan, Peshawar, and Mardan.

In Karachi, demonstrators clashed with the police near Nursery. They threw stones at and set fire to police vehicles, tore down street lights, and damaged a bus. There were reports that police fired teargas shells at the protesters.

Protesters also caused damage to public property in other cities, including Rawalpindi and Lahore.

Hours later, many users in Pakistan reported that they were unable to access social media sites in the evening.

According to the outage-tracking website, Downdetector.com, users were unable to log in to their accounts on all three platforms, meaning they also couldn't post or view anything.

A large number of smartphone users also complained about their WhatsApp which is not working both on desktops and cellphones.

Moreover, as per reports, internet speed is also slow for many users across the country.