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Pakistan has temporarily suspended mobile phone networks and internet services across the country to counter “possible threats” as national elections begin, a top government official announced.
Pakistan’s interior ministry said in a statement that the move was prompted by recent terrorist incidents in the country. A local journalist posted to X earlier Thursday said the internet was accessible through a wired broadband connection. However, the independent fault tracking service NetBlocks later announced that Pakistan had also started blocking internet services.
UPDATE: Real-time network data shows that internet outages are currently occurring in multiple areas. #Pakistan In addition to mobile network interruptions.The incident occurred on election day and came after months of digital censorship targeting opposition parties. pic.twitter.com/47Yja44TI9 — NetBlocks (@netblocks) February 8, 2024
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Voting has begun across the country and is scheduled to end at 5pm, but the Interior Ministry has not said when mobile services will resume.
It’s not unheard of for countries to turn off mobile networks and the internet on important days, with governments such as neighboring India, Uganda and Africa’s Ethiopia making similar moves in the past, but national Such blockages remain extremely rare.
Free speech advocates have criticized the government in the past for overusing mobile network shutdowns and argued that greater access to information and communications should be maintained during political voting.
