Turkey's Grand National Assembly has passed a law banning social media for children under 15, requiring platforms like YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram to implement age verification and parental controls. The legislation was catalyzed by a school shooting in April 2026. President Erdoğan has 15 days to sign it into law. Separately, the Turkish government has reached an agreement with social media companies requiring all Turkish citizens to verify their identity to use social media — ending anonymity for all users. The opposition CHP criticized the bill as a censorship tool rather than genuine child protection, pointing to Turkey's history of using platform restrictions against political opposition, including blocking Instagram and restricting communications during protests. Turkey joins Australia, Norway, France, and others in restricting minors' social media access, but stands out for pairing child protection measures with universal identity verification.
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