Blocking Twitter and Bambuser

After calls for demonstrations at Tahrir Square on 25 January 2011 against the violence of the Ministry of Interior, the worsening of the economic conditions, and the curtailment of the freedom of expression, the government of former President Hosni Mubarak blocked Twitter and Bambuser (a video sharing application), after demonstrators used them to broadcast news and videos of the protest using the famous hashtag “#Jan25”. Twitter and Bambuser said they were blocked in Egypt, as the country’s government was trying to curtail the circulation of news on the demonstrations. The authorities also blocked a number of news websites that covered the protests: Al-Dostor and Al-Badil. And finally, the mobile phone companies were banned from providing internet services on that day in the vicinity of Al-Tahrir Square.