Youtube blocked in Turkey

A new audio recording has emerged online, playing a discussion by top Turkish officials of possible military operations in Syria.


The audio uploaded on YouTube plays the voices of Turkey's intelligence chief, foreign minister and deputy head of the country's armed forces discussing the possible assault.

Ankara reacted by blocking users' access to YouTube throughout Turkey, saying the leaking of the controversial recording had created "a national security issue."

The You Tube ban comes a week after the government imposed a ban on Twitter, accusing the social networking website of violating Turkey's laws.

The ban on Twitter followed publication of documents allegedly exposing corruption in Erdogan's ruling elite.

The limitations come days ahead of the upcoming municipal elections scheduled for March 30.

Tensions have been running high between Syria and Turkey, which remains one of the outspoken opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government.

On Wednesday, Turkish army forces fired several rounds of artillery across the frontier into a border region, which is administratively part of Syria's western province of Latakia.

The development comes after Turkey shot down a Syrian fighter jet on Sunday.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the Syrian warplane was downed after it strayed into his country's airspace.

But Syria condemned the move as an act of "blatant aggression," and said the downed plane was flying over northern Syria at the time.