Doha News website, the only independent news site in Qatar, was blocked by Qatari authorities. Doha News site has been publishing news about Qatar during six years, but on November 30, 2016, Vodafone and Ooredoo (major Internet Service Providers in Qatar) blocked the site. So now is it impossible to open Doha News in Qatar with general Internet connection.
However you can simple do this with VPN tunnel.
Vodafone and Ooredo confirmed that Doha News website is now blocked in Qatar.
"Doha News's ability to report independently on important issues was unique in the Gulf region, and Qataris and non-Qataris alike benefited from its smart and sensitive coverage," said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "It's sad and disappointing that the Qatari authorities have shown themselves to be as thin-skinned as their hyper-sensitive neighbours in the region."
On November 30, Doha News published an article stating that "our website has been deliberately targeted and blocked by Qatar authorities," after the authorities and Vodafone and Ooredoo failed to respond to their queries about why their website had become inaccessible to internet users in Qatar. Vodafone stated in a December 4 letter to Doha News that they would be "pleased to unblock access once the requirements of the relevant concerned parties have been met," and referred Doha News to the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Economy and Commerce. Ooredoo said in its December 4 response that the block related to "concerns raised regarding the licensing of your organization," and referred Doha News to the same two ministries.
A spokesperson for Doha News described the decision to block the website as "a heavy-handed attempt to get us to fall in line with other local media outlets and stymie any attempts at critical reporting in the country."
"Qatar doesn't regulate the internet and it's absurd to block a website and say the website is not registered," said a Doha news spokesperson. "How many other websites on the internet have registered in Qatar? There are no two ways around the fact that the government has chosen to block access to the site because they aren't happy with everything that we publish. And that amounts to censorship."
How to Unblock Sites in Qatar?
You can bypass Internet restrictions in Qatar with secure VPN Service. VPN hides your ip address and geolocation so you can easily access any website you want.
How access blocked sites you need only 3 simple steps:
- Get VPN Account data
- Setup VPN connection (please review our vpn setup guides)
- Connect to VPN.
Now you can open any website you like.
