Internet, mobile service partially restored in Islamabad, Rawalpindi

ISLAMABAD: After a three-day standoff amid protests by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), mobile internet service was restored in Rawalpindi and Islamabad on Wednesday morning.

Life is returning to normal in the federal capital after PTI ended its protest call, with internet and mobile services partially restored.

Sources in the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) claim that the internet ban was imposed on the instructions of the Ministry of Interior for security reasons.

Apart from mobile internet, social media sites including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp were also blocked by the firewall. During the outage, users reported problems downloading and uploading media files, making it difficult for them to communicate.

PTA sources claim that while mobile internet services are back up and running, social media platforms will not be restored until the security situation is reviewed.

Wi-Fi and standard mobile network services were untouched, although social media and mobile internet were disrupted. However, the extended shutdown had a major impact on digital and communications operations for local businesses and citizens.