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ISLAMABAD - Pakistan close off YouTube and majority alternative Internet sites Thursday in a widening crackdownonline calm deemed descent to Islam, reflecting the physical governments sensitivities to an issue that has lighted protests in the Muslim country.
The move came a day after the supervision obeyed a justice sequence to retard Facebook over a page called "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" that encourages users to post images of Islams Prophet Muhammad. Most Muslims courtesy depictions of the prophet, even auspicious ones, as blasphemous.
Supporters of an Islamist domestic celebration protested opposite Facebook in at slightest 3 cities in small and pacific rallies. The government, that is without a friend between majority Islamists for siding with the United States in the fight opposite the Taliban and al-Qaida, is anticipating that the website bans will relieve annoy in the days ahead.
"We are ready to die safeguarding the respect of the dear Prophet Muhammad," pronounced Aysha Hameed, one of 1,000 womanlike protesters in Multan city.
Some criticism blockingOthers — mostly members of the some-more secular, rebuilt chosen — indicted the supervision of restraint leisure of countenance and spiteful small businesses that make use of Facebook for marketing. Many questioned need for the complete Facebook and YouTube sites to be blocked, instead of particular pagesthem.
About twenty million of Pakistans 180 million people are Internet users and amicable networking sites are between the majority popular, generally between those younger than 25. Pakistans Internet use providers" organisation pronounced use had forsaken by about twenty-five percent given Wednesday.
The offending Facebook page encourages users to post images of the prophetMay twenty to criticism threats done by a in advance Muslim organisation opposite the creators of the American TV array "South Park" for depicting Muhammad in a bear fit during an part progressing this year.
"Such antagonistic and scornful attacks harm the sentiments of Muslims around the universe and cannot be supposed underneath the clothe of leisure of expression," Foreign Ministry orator Abdul Basit said.
"Growing blasphemous contents"Pakistan and alternative Muslim nations saw large and infrequently aroused protests in 2006 when a Danish journal published cartoons of Muhammad, and again in 2008 when they were reprinted. Later the same year, a suspected al-Qaida self-murder bomber pounded the Danish Embassy in Islamabad, murdering 6 people.
The telecommunications management did not contend what materialYouTube stirred it to retard the site and some-more than 450 alternative unclear pages, usually citing "growing blasphemous contents." Wahajus Siraj, the head of the Internet use providers" association, pronounced the anathema was since images of the Prophet Muhammad were additionally gathering upthe video-sharing site.
BlackBerry use was halted for around 10 hours as efforts were done to stop mobile entrance to Facebook.
The supervision acted opposite Facebook and YouTube after it unsuccessful to convince the websites to remove the descent material, the telecommunications management said. It pronounced member from the dual websites were acquire to hit the Pakistani supervision to finalise the dispute.
Facebook pronounced the page was not a defilement of the terms, but referred to it competence be rebuilt to take it down.
"In cases similar to this, the proceed is infrequently to shorten certain calm from being shown in specific countries," it pronounced in a statement.
State Department statementIn Washington, State Department orator P.J. Crowley told reporters Thursday that the United States respects Pakistans authorised efforts to strengthen adults from descent speech. He pronounced majority imagesFacebook were deeply descent to Muslims. But he pronounced Pakistan contingency additionally be certain not to shorten the discuss of those utilizing the Internet.
Pakistan is governed by a physical domestic celebration that has small time for Islamic issues. But arguing opposite the justice sequence would leave it open to accusations by the domestic opponents of siding with those blaspheming the prophet.
"The Islamist parties have beenthe behind feet for a while, this is a good small issue for them to discuss about," pronounced Cyril Almeida, a magnanimous media columnist. "There is no approach you can have a receptive discuss in Pakistan about leisure of discuss when one side is articulate about blasphemy."
"Happy" about actionThe five business in the Dandy Net Cafe in Islamabad late Thursday afternoon concluded with the ban.
"We are really happy the supervision and the justice has taken these actions," pronounced Mohammad Aamir Chohan, a 28-year-old engineer. "I know restraint these sites is not a resolution to the problem, but we have sent a summary to the universe not to harm the feelings of Muslims."
Feelings were only as heated between those against to the ban.
"Sad and annoying day in the story of Pakistan," one user postedthe microblogging site Twitter.
Reba Shahid, the editor of Spider, a monthly imitation repository about the Internet, pronounced the supervision "might as well take afar cell phones and close off electricity, do the total thing."
"You"re stemming the upsurge of information, you"re stemming my expansion as an intellectual, you"re stemming my entrance to the rest of the world. I competence as well go home and sleep," she said.
Pakistan close off entrance to YouTube for dual days in 2008 since of what it pronounced was unIslamic content. Turkey, Thailand, Indonesia and Morocco have all close off entrance to YouTube in the past for assorted reasons, whilst China customarily bans Facebook and YouTube.
Work-aroundsIt stays to be seen how successful the supervision will be at keeping Internet users afar from the close off sites. Citizens mostly have small difficulty operative around a anathema by utilizing substitute servers and alternative means.
Click for associated contentFree discuss vs. hatred speechFacebookPakistan blocks FacebookFacebook: The "Evil Interface?Facebook, cell carriers suggest free entrance to siteFacebook rolling out new security features
"Whats usual to Facebook and Lashkar-e-Taiba?" one userTwitter wrote, referring to a Pakistani belligerent organisation that is criminialized but has an purported front organisation that operates openly. "They are both criminialized in Pakistan, but Pakistanis can still find them if they wish to."
writers Sebastian Abbot, Zarar Khan and Anita Chang in Islamabad and Foster Klug in Washington contributed to this report.
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