Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube were effectively blocked in Turkey on Friday as members of the military attempted to take over the Turkish government in a coup d’état.
Confirmed: Twitter, Facebook & YouTube blocked in #Turkey at 10:50PM after apparent military uprising in #Turkey pic.twitter.com/J9ER5yOGYP
— Turkey Blocks (@TurkeyBlocks) July 15, 2016
As of 1am local time, the throttling of traffic to social media appears to have been lifted, according to Dyn Research. Twitter said via its @Policy account that their service was not fully blocked, but Twitter traffic was likely throttled.
We have no reason to think we’ve been fully blocked in #Turkey, but we suspect there is an intentional slowing of our traffic in country.
— Global Government Affairs (@GlobalAffairs) July 15, 2016
As of 2:45am local time, the coup attempt—which apparently drew the support of zero Turkish political parties—reportedly has been “repelled,” though an hour later, CNN Turkey was taken over by soldiers and the live feed was shut down. Soon after, though, the soldiers had been overtaken and CNN Turkey began broadcasting again.
At about 4:45am local time, the Ankara attorney’s office reported that 42 people had died in the coup attempt.
F-16 fighter jets swooped in over Ankara, the Turkish capital, while soldiers attempted to seize control of the seat of government. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told NTV “it is correct” that there was an attempted military coup. Yildirim vowed that those responsible would pay the “highest price.”
F-16 flying low in Ankara. And I mean LOW. #Turkey https://t.co/OGV4gbA3Fo
— Noam Blum (@neontaster) July 15, 2016
The military claimed it had taken over the government. A statement from the Turkish Armed Forces reads as follows:
“Turkish Armed Forces have completely taken over the administration of the country to reinstate constitutional order, human rights and freedoms, the rule of law and the general security that was damaged. All international agreements are still valid. We hope that all of our good relationships with all countries will continue.”
Hours before the coup attempt disintegrated, Yildirim said the “illegal” attempt had failed. Police heavily retaliated against members of the military.
Turkish PM Yildirim: Police forces will retaliate [against army forces’ coup attempt].#Turkey #couphttps://t.co/cCeib4TS7L
— efe kerem sözeri 🍉 (@efekerem) July 15, 2016
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a statement with CNN Türk via FaceTime. The embattled president called on citizens to take to the streets in defiance of a military curfew. “Those who attempted a coup will pay the highest price,” he said, echoing Yildirim.
Erdogan live via mobile #Turkey pic.twitter.com/BbOSC8nMy2
— Mister Schtief (@mrschtief) July 15, 2016
Erdogan making a statement on facetime right now. pic.twitter.com/F1Nip0C01V
— Ceylan Yeginsu (@CeylanWrites) July 15, 2016
Turkey’s national police also urged citizens to retake the streets from the military, reports Daily Dot contributor Efe Kerem Sozeri.
Turkish National Police verified Twitter account urges people to *take* streets against the #couphttps://t.co/Dv0vDgBDzo
— efe kerem sözeri 🍉 (@efekerem) July 15, 2016
According to numerous reports, Erdoğan attempted to gain asylum in Germany but was denied. He was reportedly en route to London before returning to Istanbul.
At 3:30am local time, Erdoğan had returned to Turkey.
Update: Erdoğan’s plane has landed at Istanbul Ataturk Airport after being escorted by F16 fighter jetshttps://t.co/g9z6VVDGvc
— efe kerem sözeri 🍉 (@efekerem) July 16, 2016
Around 1am local time, tanks reportedly began firing on the Turkish parliament building. Others reported shots fired at civilians.
BREAKING: Tanks open fire around Turkish parliament building; gunfire heard at Istanbul airport, witnesses say – @Reuters
— Conflict News (@Conflicts) July 15, 2016
At roughly 2am local time, the Turkish government appeared to regain some control from the coup leaders. It remained unclear at the time whether the coup attempt would hold.
The blockage of social media is not a rare occurrence in Turkey. The government maintains tight control over the internet and regularly censors information, blocks access to services, and punishes citizens for what they post online.
Turkish citizens regularly circumvent government strangleholds on the internet through the use of virtual private networks (VPNs) or anonymity tools like Tor. A list of available links to access the Tor Browser Bundle are available here.
Android phone users can also download the Orbot app, which routes users through the Tor network.
Need to reach @facebook @YouTube @twitter in #Istanbul #Turkey? Download #Orbot https://t.co/OWwjyfJ90N #Tor pic.twitter.com/truElKQQUq
— The Tor Project (@torproject) July 15, 2016
If internet access is not available, the French Data Network is offering free dial-up service to Turks.
#Turkey : free dialup Internet access – Dial +33 860 46 99 88 or +33 172 89 01 50 | login: toto | passwd: toto | See https://t.co/ecSEKCcZAz
— FDN (@assoFDN) July 15, 2016
Privacy app maker TunnelBear also offered those in Turkey unlimited bandwidth through their apps.
To our friends in #Turkey, you now have unlimited data to stay connected with #TunnelBear, stay safe #coup https://t.co/nSZn9gxEk8
— TunnelBear (@theTunnelBear) July 15, 2016
A livestream of the developments via Sky News is available below. You can also find Facebook Live streams from the region via the Live map here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y60wDzZt8yg
Last update at 12:08am CT, July 16; 8:08am, July 16 Ankara local time.
Correction: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was reportedly out of the country on vacation.
This story is developing.
