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Türkiye Blocks Roblox Access over Abuse Concerns

Online gaming service Roblox. Lionel Bonaventure | AFP | Getty Images
Online gaming service Roblox. Lionel Bonaventure | AFP | Getty Images
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Türkiye Blocks Roblox Access over Abuse Concerns

Online gaming service Roblox. Lionel Bonaventure | AFP | Getty Images
Online gaming service Roblox. Lionel Bonaventure | AFP | Getty Images

Türkiye has blocked access to the popular video game platform Roblox over concerns about content that could lead to child abuse, the country's justice minister said.

"Our country is obliged to take the necessary measures to ensure the protection of our children," Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc said on social media platform X. "Using technology in a negative way is never acceptable."

He said a Turkish court had imposed the access block under an investigation by prosecutors in the southern province of Adana due to concerns about content that could lead to the abuse of children.

A spokesperson for Roblox, which hosts user-created games, said ensuring the safety of users, particularly the youngest, is at the core of the company's operations.

"We respect the laws and regulations in countries where we operate and share local lawmakers' commitment to children. We look forward to working together to ensure Roblox is back online in Türkiye as soon as possible," the spokesperson said in an email to Reuters.

The Roblox ban came after Türkiye blocked access to social media platform Instagram last week, a move it said was due to Instagram not abiding by certain laws and public sensitivities.

Turkish officials held talks with Instagram this week but the issue has not yet been resolved.

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Hottest Oceans in 400 Years Endanger Great Barrier Reef

FILE PHOTO: Peter Gash, owner and manager of the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, snorkels during an inspection of the reef's condition in an area called the 'Coral Gardens' located at Lady Elliot Island, north-east of the town of Bundaberg in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Peter Gash, owner and manager of the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, snorkels during an inspection of the reef's condition in an area called the 'Coral Gardens' located at Lady Elliot Island, north-east of the town of Bundaberg in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo
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Hottest Oceans in 400 Years Endanger Great Barrier Reef

FILE PHOTO: Peter Gash, owner and manager of the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, snorkels during an inspection of the reef's condition in an area called the 'Coral Gardens' located at Lady Elliot Island, north-east of the town of Bundaberg in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Peter Gash, owner and manager of the Lady Elliot Island Eco Resort, snorkels during an inspection of the reef's condition in an area called the 'Coral Gardens' located at Lady Elliot Island, north-east of the town of Bundaberg in Queensland, Australia, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/David Gray/File Photo

Water temperatures in and around Australia's Great Barrier Reef have risen to their warmest in 400 years over the past decade, placing the world's largest reef under threat, according to research published on Thursday.
The reef, the world's largest living ecosystem, stretches for some 1,500 miles (2,400 km) off the coast of the northern state of Queensland. The research is rare in putting the effects of man-made climate change into historical context, as other surveys on damage to the reef have a shorter time frame.
A group of scientists at universities across Australia drilled cores into the coral and, much like counting the rings on a tree, analyzed the samples to measure summer ocean temperatures going back to 1618.
Combined with ship and satellite data going back around a hundred years, the results show ocean temperatures that were stable for hundreds of years begin to rise from 1900 onwards as a result of human influence, the research concluded.
From 1960 to 2024, the study's authors observed an average annual warming for January to March of 0.12°C (0.22°F) per decade, Reuters reported.
Since 2016, the reef has experienced five summers of mass coral bleaching, when large sections of the reef turn white due to heat stress, putting them at greater risk of death.
These summers were during five of the six warmest years in the last four centuries, the study showed.
"The world is losing one of its icons," said Benjamin Henley, an academic at the University of Melbourne and one of the study's co-authors.
"I find that to be an absolute tragedy. It's hard to understand how that can happen on our watch in our lifetime. So it's very, very sad."
The last temperature data point, from January to March of this year, was the highest on record and "head and shoulders" above any other year, Henley said.
Coral reefs protect shorelines from erosion, are home to thousands of species of fish, and are an important source of tourism revenue in many countries.
At least 54 countries and regions have experienced mass bleaching of their reefs since February 2023 as climate change warms the ocean's surface waters, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has said.
The Great Barrier Reef is not currently on UNESCO's list of world heritage sites that are in danger, though the UN recommends it should be added.
Australia has lobbied for years to keep the reef - which contributes A$6.4 billion ($4.2 billion) to the economy annually - off the endangered list, as it could damage tourism.
Lissa Schindler, Great Barrier Reef campaign manager at the Australian Marine Conservation Society, said the research showed Australia needed to do more to reduce its emissions.