ALBAWABA - With the USA passing a bill to ban TikTok, Iraq seems to be following in its footsteps by revealing on Monday, that a request had been submitted to the Council of Ministers to block the Chinese application from the country causing concern among its users.
According to Erem News, The news comes after The Iraqi Minister of Communications, Hiyam Al-Yasiri added "Iraq was removed from the list of countries with the highest visits and viewing of pornographic sites," and stressed the need to block such applications from the country.
Iraq to ban TikTok over religious concerns and homosexuality?
This comes from a moral and religious standpoint after the Federal Supreme Court issued the decision on Mar. 14, 2024, that it would block websites that include "the production and publication of clips that violate morals, ethics, and degrading content".
According to the Ministry, content that affects morality and religion includes stuff that promotes prostitution, homosexuality, and abuse. Questions were raised if the social media platform should be banned or not.
USA's decision on banning the platform is different. According to Al Jazeera, The House of Representatives approved a bill that would force ByteDance, the owner of TikTok to give control to the US in America or face a ban because the app allegedly can access user's data and information.
TikTok surpassed Meta and YouTube in Iraq
According to Iraqi digital media, TikTok users in Iraq have reached nearly 32 million gaining more than 10 million from last year. The platform's popularity skyrocketed worldwide, especially among Gen Z. It surpassed all competitors including Zuckerberg's Meta and Google's YouTube.
