27 Mar 2014

Court orders end to Twitter ban

8:47 am on 27 March 2014

A court in Turkey has ordered a ban on Twitter to be lifted, but it could be weeks before it takes effect.

Turkish users of Twitter expected to regain access shortly after the ruling but it remained blocked.

The telecommunication bureau (TIB) has 30 days to decide whether to lift the ban.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to "wipe out Twitter" after users spread accusations of corruption.

Twitter itself has filed a challenge to the access ban, which was imposed on Friday on the grounds that Twitter had failed to remove accusations of corruption involving senior officials.

A number of complaints were filed to courts, arguing the ban was illegal and unconstitutional.

The administrative court in Ankara issued a temporary injunction on Wednesday ordering the TIB to restore access to Twitter until it could deliver its full verdict on the ban.