GAZA: A Gaza company that operates water desalination plants serving nearly half of the enclave’s population said on Tuesday it had resumed operations after Hamas-led security freed a staff member whom they detained on Monday.
A statement issued by the Abdul Salam Yassin Company, whose services reach more than 1 million people, said the decision to resume operations came after the issue was resolved, adding that the staff member was “fine and in good health.”
The company apologized for what it said was a “misunderstanding” that led to the detention of its employee and affirmed its respect for the Hamas-led government in Gaza.
Hamas government officials declined comment on the arrest, but a source on Wednesday confirmed the employee had been freed, without elaborating on the reasons for his detention.
The Palestinian militant group has been gradually reasserting control in areas of Gaza from which Israeli forces have withdrawn under an October 10 ceasefire deal as talks over the war-devastated Palestinian territory’s future grind on.
Israel halted all water and electricity supply to Gaza early in the war triggered by Hamas’ cross-border attack in October 2023, but partially eased the utilities blockade later.
Most of Gaza’s water and sanitation infrastructure has been destroyed and pumps from its aquifers often rely on electricity from small generators. But fuel for generators is rarely available given Israel’s curbs on deliveries into the enclave, citing the risk of diversion into Hamas’ hands.
The company’s work is vital to the population in Gaza, where clean water is scarce. It owns three major desalination plants, and 80 smaller ones across the territory. It also runs over 70 trucks that carry water containers across Gaza.
US President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan for post-war Gaza, whose first stage was the ceasefire, stipulates that Hamas disarm and renounce any future role in governance of the enclave, but who would replace them has yet to be agreed.
Hamas has refused to yield its weaponry before a Palestinian state is established. Israeli forces continue to control around half of the coastal Gaza Strip.
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Gaza water provider resumes services after Hamas frees employee
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Gaza water provider resumes services after Hamas frees employee
- The company said the decision to resume operations came after the issue was resolved
- The company apologized for what it said was a “misunderstanding“
Turkiye edges toward curbing social media access to minors amid global push
ISTANBUL: Turkiye is laying the groundwork to restrict social media access for minors with a parliamentary report this week calling for broad measures including age verification and content filtering, joining a growing list of countries seeking tighter controls.
President Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling AK Party is expected to submit a draft law on the issue soon and Family and Social Services Minister Mahinur Ozdemir Goktas told reporters after a cabinet meeting last month that the bill would include a social media ban for minors and compel service providers to build content-filtering systems.
The wide-ranging recommendations in this week’s commission report also include the removal of content without notice and the monitoring of kids’ video games or toys with AI functionality for harmful content.
Australia in December became the world’s first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking them from platforms including TikTok, Alphabet’s GOOGL.O YouTube and Meta’s META.O Instagram and Facebook.
Spain wants to prohibit social media for under-16s, while Greece and Slovenia are working on a similar ban amid mounting concerns over its impact on children’s health and safety. France, Britain and Germany are also considering restrictions for minors.
REPORT RECOMMENDS NIGHT-TIME RESTRICTIONS
The Turkish parliamentary report further recommends night-time Internet restrictions for devices used by minors under 18, mandatory content filtration on social media until aged 18 and a social media ban until aged 16.
“We need to protect our kids from moral erosion. We aim to protect our children from all types of addictions, including digital ones,” Harun Mertoglu, senior AKP lawmaker and a member of parliament’s human rights enquiry committee, told Reuters.
Some parents echo the sentiment. Shopkeeper Belma Kececioglu said her 10-year-old spends hours on social media and playing games.
“It is like all the kids are social media addicts. We are already troubled by this and it gets even worse with harmful content,” Kececioglu said, as her son played a game on his phone after school.
Social media companies have warned that bans on minors risk being undermined by weak age-verification technology and could push children onto unregulated platforms.
Turkiye already regulates social media companies heavily and is quick to impose takedowns and access bans. It currently bans access to 1.2 million web pages and social media posts as of end-2024, according to a report by local censorship watchdog IFOD.
Current regulations require companies to process official or user requests within two days, leaving little room for due process, and compel operators to conform to almost all takedown requests. Social media companies that don’t conform to regulations may face advertisement bans, bandwidth reduction and fines up to 3 percent of global revenues.
Gaming platform Roblox, Discord and story-sharing site Wattpad have been banned in Turkiye since 2024. Turkiye had also banned Wikipedia for around three years.
President Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling AK Party is expected to submit a draft law on the issue soon and Family and Social Services Minister Mahinur Ozdemir Goktas told reporters after a cabinet meeting last month that the bill would include a social media ban for minors and compel service providers to build content-filtering systems.
The wide-ranging recommendations in this week’s commission report also include the removal of content without notice and the monitoring of kids’ video games or toys with AI functionality for harmful content.
Australia in December became the world’s first country to ban social media for children under 16, blocking them from platforms including TikTok, Alphabet’s GOOGL.O YouTube and Meta’s META.O Instagram and Facebook.
Spain wants to prohibit social media for under-16s, while Greece and Slovenia are working on a similar ban amid mounting concerns over its impact on children’s health and safety. France, Britain and Germany are also considering restrictions for minors.
REPORT RECOMMENDS NIGHT-TIME RESTRICTIONS
The Turkish parliamentary report further recommends night-time Internet restrictions for devices used by minors under 18, mandatory content filtration on social media until aged 18 and a social media ban until aged 16.
“We need to protect our kids from moral erosion. We aim to protect our children from all types of addictions, including digital ones,” Harun Mertoglu, senior AKP lawmaker and a member of parliament’s human rights enquiry committee, told Reuters.
Some parents echo the sentiment. Shopkeeper Belma Kececioglu said her 10-year-old spends hours on social media and playing games.
“It is like all the kids are social media addicts. We are already troubled by this and it gets even worse with harmful content,” Kececioglu said, as her son played a game on his phone after school.
Social media companies have warned that bans on minors risk being undermined by weak age-verification technology and could push children onto unregulated platforms.
Turkiye already regulates social media companies heavily and is quick to impose takedowns and access bans. It currently bans access to 1.2 million web pages and social media posts as of end-2024, according to a report by local censorship watchdog IFOD.
Current regulations require companies to process official or user requests within two days, leaving little room for due process, and compel operators to conform to almost all takedown requests. Social media companies that don’t conform to regulations may face advertisement bans, bandwidth reduction and fines up to 3 percent of global revenues.
Gaming platform Roblox, Discord and story-sharing site Wattpad have been banned in Turkiye since 2024. Turkiye had also banned Wikipedia for around three years.
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