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Snapchat Scrubs Al Jazeera in Saudi Arabia

Snapchat Scrubs Al-Jazeera in Saudi Arabia

By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 18 September 2017 17:25 IST

Highlights

Snapchat has scrubbed Al Jazeera from its app in Saudi Arabia
The stories posted by Al-Jazeera were in violation with local laws there
The shut-down of Al-Jazeera was also demanded following that story

Global image messaging service Snapchat has scrubbed Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera from its app in Saudi Arabia at the request of Saudi authorities, the company said on Monday.

"We make an effort to comply with local laws in the countries where we operate," a spokesman for parent company Snap Inc. said.

The request to block Al Jazeera's Snapchat presence in the kingdom was made before the weekend, the company told AFP.

According to Snap Inc., the Saudi ministry of culture and information found Al Jazeera's Discover Publisher Story channel to be in violation of local laws.

Saudi Arabia and its allies the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt have been boycotting Qatar since June 5 in the region's worst diplomatic crisis in years.

They sealed the emirate's only land border, ordered its citizens to leave and closed their airspace and waters to Qatari flights and shipping.

They also demanded that it close broadcasting giant Al-Jazeera.

Until now, Al Jazeera's Snapchat channel can still be viewed in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt.

Saudi Arabia, with its bulging youth population, is among the world's top users of social media per capita. The internet represents a limited space for freedom of expression in the conservative kingdom.

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