Saudi Arabia blocks Facebook over moral concerns

[Newsjock]

Source: Associated Press

An official with Saudi Arabia's communications authority says it has blocked Facebook because the popular social networking website doesn't conform with the kingdom's conservative values.

The official says Saudi's Communications and Information Technology Commission blocked the site Saturday and an error message shows up when Internet users try to access it.

He says Facebook's content had "crossed a line" with the kingdom's conservative morals, but that blocking the site is a temporary measure.

Read more: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Saudi-Arabia-blocks-Facebook-apf-369737814.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=

[msongs]

1. yes we have seen their moral values in action before nt

[Douglas Carpenter]

2. I just called a friend it Al Khobar and Facebook is still running - no block at all

It might be like the block on Blackberry that lasted a few hours and then was removed.

[customerserviceguy]

3. However, they're perfectly fine with Ican'tseeyourface.com (n/t)

[onehandle]

4. Too bad. They deserve Facebook.

They financed 9/11. We financed Facebook.

Horror deserves horror.

[The_Commonist]

5. Yes, Facebook is such a horror!

People wishing each other a happy birthday, catching up with old friends from high school, sharing pictures of the kids and vacations. It really is the moral equivalent of the September 11 attacks, and should be shut down, not just in Saudi Arabia, but throughout the entire universe...

[kestrel91316]

6. Facebook is how I managed to reunite with a number of long-lost cousins.

How is that like 9/11??

[uppityperson]

7. I think it is sarcasm.

[uppityperson]

8. your link now says they unblocked it again.

- Saudi Arabia's communications authority unblocked Facebook on Saturday after shutting down the popular social networking website for a few hours.

[alp227]

9. Maybe Prop 8 supporters would like to move to Saudi Arabia.

Oh yeah...

[Douglas Carpenter]

10. latest: Saudi Arabia unblocks Facebook after brief ban

/

Saudi Arabia unblocks Facebook hours after banning the site in the kingdom

Abdullah Al-Shihri, Associated Press, On Saturday November 13, 2010, 12:25 pm EST

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) -- Saudi Arabia's communications authority unblocked Facebook on Saturday after shutting down the popular social networking website for a few hours.

An official with Saudi's Communications and Information Technology Commission said the kingdom blocked the site briefly Saturday because the content had "crossed a line" with the country's conservative values.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media, later said the communications authority lifted the ban. The reason the commission reversed its decision hours later was not immediately clear.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Saudi-Arabia-blocks-Facebook-apf-369737814.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&ccode=