September 22, 2008

Kuwait orders YouTube ban for hosting anti Islamic content

by mohsin

Even though YouTube has the option of removing offensive content from its site, the Ministry of Communication in Kuwait has asked all ISPs in the country to ban the website since it has content that is considered offensive to Muslims. The offensive content includes a video of a man singing verses from the Holy Quran while playing the Oudh (regional musical instrument) and another video showing caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH). The site was supposed to be blocked immediately but due to technical snags, the site is still accessible in the region. Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and UAE regularly bans websites hosting p****graphic photos and other sites like Skype that can be used to make free international phone calls over the Internet.

This is not the first time YouTube has faced opposition, a few months ago, India had banned the site due to content showing a man depicting Mahatma Gandhi in a parody performance. In March 2007, Turkey had banned the site for hosting content posted by Greek and Turkish up loaders.
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