The Geekno Lounge

Pakistan bans YouTube amid furor over anti-Islam video Prime minister calls the clip “blasphemous” and instructs the Ministry of Information to block access to the video site. The prime minister of Pakistan has banned YouTube in the country over the video site’s refusal to block a clip that mocks the prophet Muhammad. Reuters reports that Raja Pervez Ashraf ordered the country’s Ministry of Information to block YouTube so the video, which he called “blasphemous,” could not be viewed. The majority of Pakistani Internet traffic is routed through the Pakistan Internet Exchange, which is run by the state-owned Pakistan Telecommunication Company. The exchange’s ability to filter content has so far been limited, spurring the country earlier this year to publish a request for proposals for a more sophisticated system that would block up to 50 million URLs. The country has previously sought to block access to YouTube videos, including a clip of a Dutch lawmaker in 2008. In 2010, it also sought a blanket ban on “objectionable content” surrounding a Facebook page called “Post Drawings of the Prophet Mohammad Day.”

Pakistan bans YouTube amid furor over anti-Islam video

Prime minister calls the clip “blasphemous” and instructs the Ministry of Information to block access to the video site.

The prime minister of Pakistan has banned YouTube in the country over the video site’s refusal to block a clip that mocks the prophet Muhammad.

Reuters reports that Raja Pervez Ashraf ordered the country’s Ministry of Information to block YouTube so the video, which he called “blasphemous,” could not be viewed.

The majority of Pakistani Internet traffic is routed through the Pakistan Internet Exchange, which is run by the state-owned Pakistan Telecommunication Company. The exchange’s ability to filter content has so far been limited, spurring the country earlier this year to publish a request for proposals for a more sophisticated system that would block up to 50 million URLs. The country has previously sought to block access to YouTube videos, including a clip of a Dutch lawmaker in 2008. In 2010, it also sought a blanket ban on “objectionable content” surrounding a Facebook page called “Post Drawings of the Prophet Mohammad Day.”