Sputnik Turkey Continues on Facebook After Turkey Blocks Website

Sputnik news agency in Turkey is publishing materials on its Facebook page after its website was blocked in the country, the agency said Friday in a press release.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Earlier in the day, the Turkish Telecommunications Department confirmed that a decision had been made to block the Sputnik website within the country on Thursday evening, citing "administrative measures." A Turkish court is expected to make a final decision on the blocking later on.

The agency said that links to its articles on Facebook are also posted on Twitter. According to the press release, Sputnik's apps for iOS and Android devices are still working.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry refused to comment on the website blocking.

Sputnik Editor-in-Chief Margarita Simonyan said the blocking was a sign of censorship and lack of freedom of speech in Turkey.

In January 2015, the Turkish prime minister and other ministers received the right to block any type of resource in the Internet without a court order. The ministers may demand the Turkish Telecommunications Department and providers to block sites or delete content within four hours after receiving a notice of "national security, protection of social order, or for the prevention of crime."