21 INTERNET SHUTDOWNS IN 2024 Eastern Europe and Central Asia Latin America and the Caribbean Kyrgyzstan Authorities blocked TikTok nationwide in April 2024,82 and as of this writing, it remains blocked. Prior to this, Kyrgyzstan had not had a shutdown since 2020. Venezuela Following the presidential election in July 2024 that international monitors deemed neither free nor fair,83 authorities have met protests with deadly force, scores of arrests and disappearances, and an array of technology-enabled political violence.84 In a further crackdown on dissent, they blocked numerous platforms on August 8, including Signal and X, and then blocked YouTube on November 23.85 Israel Israel imposed six shutdowns in Gaza in 2024. This includes one continuous shutdown from October 9, 2023, which brought 13 local ISPs offline (eight of which never came back online),86 and five targeted shutdowns in governorates and towns that were the focus of Israeli military bombardments. Middle East and North Africa Sudan Warring parties imposed at least four shutdowns during the civil war in 2024, all of which coincided with grave human rights abuses.87 The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) imposed two shutdowns by taking over data centers, resulting in nationwide, months-long disruptions. The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) imposed one shutdown in Darfur in January,88 and in September, in the midst of heavy fighting, there was another shutdown in Omdurman, with no clear attribution. Mauritania Authorities followed the two shutdowns in 2023 with another two in 2024.89 In the midst of post-election protests in July, authorities shut down mobile internet for weeks, and then cut off the same networks in August during baccalaureate exams.90 82 France 24 (2024). Kyrgyzstan's TikTok block builds censorship fears. https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20240419-kyrgyzstan-stiktok-block-builds-censorship-fears 83 VOA (2024). Concern grows as Venezuela blocks election observers. https://www.voanews.com/a/concern-grows-as-venezuela-blockselection-observers/7715124.html 84 Access Now (2024). Venezuela’s many means of surveillance and control. https://www.accessnow.org/the-many-means-of-surveillanceand-control-in-venezuela/ 85 Access Now (2024). Maduro must #KeepItOn in times of protest and unrest. https://www.accessnow.org/press-release/maduro-keepitonduring-protest-and-unrest/ 86 Supra note 53. Access Now (2023). 88 Supra note 9. Access Now (2024). 90 Access Now (2024) on X. https://x.com/accessnow/status/1823676084505792766 87 Human Rights Watch (2024). Sudan: One Year of Atrocities Requires New Global Approach https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/04/13/sudan-one-year-atrocities-requires-new-global-approach 89 Access Now (2024). Authorities in Mauritania must #KeepItOn during presidential inauguration and beyond. https://www.accessnow.org/pressrelease/mauritania-authorities-keepiton-during-and-after-presidential-inauguration/