Davutoglu sign convention against internet bans, including Youtube

Turkey on Wednesday signed an international convention to regulate how the fight against online crime is handled, under which domestic courts will no longer have the authority to issue bans on internationally popular sites such as YouTube. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu signed the Council of Europe's Convention on Cybercrime. Under the agreement, the Internet in Turkey will finally operate within a set legal framework. Turkey passed a law in 2007 that made it possible to issue bans on certain websites to fight illegal gambling and sexual abuse of children online. In 2008, a court ruled in favor of cutting Internet users' access to YouTube over videos posted on the site that were deemed insulting to the nation's founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. The ban, an international embarrassment for Turkey, stayed in place for two-and-a-half years.