The Turkish government lifted a two-and-a-half-year ban on Wikipedia on Wednesday, restoring access to the online encyclopedia a month after the country’s top court ruled that blocking it was unconstitutional. Access to Wikipedia was blocked in Turkey in 2017, after the site refused to remove unflattering references to Turkey’s relationship with Syrian militants and state-sponsored terrorists. Turkey began allowing access to the site again on Wednesday, hours after its Official Gazette published the Constitutional Court’s ruling in favor of Wikipedia, The Associated Press reported. In December, the court had found that the ban violated the right to free expression protected in Turkey’s Constitution. By late Wednesday, access had been restored to most of the country, according to NetBlocks, a group that tracks internet usage and cybersecurity.

Source: New York Times January 15, 2020 23:37 UTC