India tops the list in highest number of internet shutdowns in the world for 5th year in a row

New Delhi: India has topped the list of countries that imposed the highest number of internet shutdowns in the world in 2022, for the fifth successive year according to internet advocacy watchdog Access Now.

Out of 187 internet shutdowns globally recorded, 84 took place in India, including 49 in Indian- administered Kashmir, the New York-based digital rights advocacy group said in a report published on Tuesday, as quoted by Reuters.

"Authorities disrupted internet access at least 49 times in Kashmir due to political instability and violence, including a string of 16 back-to-back orders for three-day-long curfew-style shutdowns in January and February 2022," the watchdog report added.

Kashmir has long been a flashpoint between India and Pakistan. In August 2019, the central government had scrapped the autonomy of the Muslim-majority state of Jammu and Kashmir, splitting it into two federally administered territories.

The government has since regularly imposed communications restrictions on the region on security grounds. The rights groups have condemned the restrictions as ways to quash dissent.

Militants have battled India's rule in Kashmir for more than three decades. While India blames Pakistan for stoking the revolt, the latter denies the claims.

Although India once again topped the list in internet shutdowns, 2022 marked the first time since 2017 that there were fewer than 100 shutdowns in the country, the watchdog said, reports Reuters.

Ukraine was second on the list, with the Russian military cutting access to the internet at least 22 times after Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24 of last year.

"During Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Russian military cut internet access at least 22 times, engaging in cyberattacks and deliberately destroying telecommunications infrastructure," the watchdog said in its report, reports Reuters.

Ukraine was followed on the list by Iran where authorities imposed 18 internet shutdowns in 2022 in response to demonstrations against the government.

Nationwide anti-government protests erupted in Iran after 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini died in police custody on Sept. 16 last year. Amini was arrested in Tehran by the morality police for wearing her hijab 'improperly'.

The hijab rules in the country require women to entirely cover their hair and bodies. According to Amini's family and local media, she was severely beaten. Amini died a few days later while still in custody.

Based on a Reuters story