Facebook, TikTok suspended in Gabon under regulator’s order

Gabonese authorities impose indefinite social media blackout, citing risks to social cohesion and national stability.Published On 18 Feb 2026Facebook and TikTok have been suspended in Gabon “until further notice” after the Central African nation’s media regulator accused social media platforms of publishing content that stokes conflict and divisions in society.AFP news agency reported on Wednesday that the two social media platforms were no longer available in Gabon. It wasn’t immediately clear if other platforms were still operating or not.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Are ‘low-cost, high-impact’ drones making Sahel fighters tougher to beat?list 2 of 3Are African ‘water wars’ on the horizon as AU puts the issue on its agenda?list 3 of 3AU calls for end to ‘extermination’ of Palestinians, decries African warsend of listGabon’s media regulator on Tuesday announced the suspensions, citing the risk of “conflict-inducing excesses”. It did not specify any social media platforms included in the ban.The decision came amid a wave of social unrest with teachers on strike and other civil servants threatening to walk off their jobs, less than a year after President Brice Oligui Nguema was elected.Teachers began striking over pay and conditions in December, and protests for similar demands have since spread to other public sectors, including health, higher education and broadcasting.The High Authority for Communication imposed “the immediate suspension of social media platforms in Gabon”, its spokesman Jean-Claude Mendome said in a televised statement.He said “inappropriate, defamatory, hateful and insulting content” was undermining “human dignity, public morality, the honour of citizens, social cohesion, the stability of the republic’s institutions and national security”.The spokesman also cited the “spread of false information”, “cyberbullying” and “unauthorised disclosure of personal data” as reasons for the decision.