YouTube banned in Turkey second time

One of the world's most popular video websites YouTube has been banned in Turkey for the second time because it allegedly insulted Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey, according to media reports Monday.

On Friday, internet users in Turkey found the website replaced by a notice saying: "Access to this web site has been suspended in accordance with decision no: 2008/55 of T.R. Ankara 12th Criminal Court of Peace."

It still remains unclear which video exactly is to blame, but some media sources say that a problem video compared Ataturk with a monkey.

It is illegal in Turkey to insult the revered figure, whose portrait still hangs in nearly all government offices nearly 70 years after his death.

It is not clear how long the current ban would last. The state-run Anatolia said YouTube officials issued a statement saying the company hoped access would be re-established quickly.

In March 2007, YouTube was banned for the same reason for two days until offending videos were removed from the website.

Turkey is not the first country to block YouTube however. In 2007, the Thai government blocked access to the popular site for 4 months because of clips the government deemed "offensive" towards the Thai monarch King Bhumibol Adulyadej.