Residents gather outside the Pearl Beach Restaurant following an attack by Al Shabaab militants at the Liido beach in Mogadishu, Somalia June 10, 2023.
REUTERS/Feisal Omar/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMOGADISHU, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Somalia has banned TikTok, messaging app Telegram and online-betting website 1XBet to limit the spread of indecent content and propaganda, its communications minister said.
Members of insurgent group al Shabaab often post about their activities on TikTok and Telegram.
The decision comes days after Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said a military offensive against al Shabaab aims to eliminate the al Qaeda-linked group in the next five months.
TikTok, Telegram and 1XBet did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.
Persons:
Al Shabaab, Feisal Omar, Jama Hassan Khalif, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, 1XBet, TikTok, Abdi Sheikh, George Obulutsa, Devika
Organizations:
Pearl, REUTERS, Rights, Thomson
Locations:
Mogadishu, Somalia, Rights MOGADISHU, Shabaab, TikTok, United States, Montana