Social media platform X says it is challenging block of jailed Istanbul mayor's account

Amid skepticism from digital advocates, social media giant X has disclosed its plan to contest a request to suspend the account of Istanbul's jailed mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, on its platform. The announcement, made via a post on X, came after the platform received a government-mandated injunction to comply or face potential restrictions on its operations in Turkey, as reported by the Turkish Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK).

In its statement, X cited Turkish laws as the reason for its compliance with the order, but also noted its intent to challenge the decision in court, providing the court order for transparency. Imamoglu's primary X account, which amassed nearly ten million followers, was previously blocked in Turkey in May 2025 under a similar government order, a move which X also contested through legal channels.

However, digital rights campaigners remain skeptical about X's commitment to challenge Turkish authorities. Yaman Akdeniz, founder of the Turkish freedom of expression organization IFOD, expressed doubt about the company's willingness to contest such decisions, stating that while X has made selective appeals to the Constitutional Court, it does not consistently share details about its judicial challenges.

According to X's latest transparency report, the platform received 11,107 removal requests from Turkey between July and December 2024, acting on 86 percent of these cases. A review by The Washington Post revealed that X complied with 71 percent of legal requests to remove content in the first half of 2024, marking a 20 percent increase from its 2021 figures. Notably, X acted on 68 percent of requests from Turkey, totaling 9,364 cases in the first half of 2024.

The controversy extends beyond Turkey, with X also blocking accounts of prominent critics, including human rights activist Yahya Assiri and activist Abdullah Alaoudh, son of imprisoned cleric Salman al-Ouda, in Saudi Arabia. Such actions reflect X's role in complying with takedown requests from governments critical of online content associated with dissent.

X has previously expressed a stance on defending user voices, yet its actions in multiple countries suggest a pattern of accommodating such requests, often in collaboration with tech giants like Meta and YouTube.