India blocks Dawn News, Samaa TV, Ary News, Geo News, and 12 other Pakistani YouTube accounts

The Indian government has blocked many Pakistan-based YouTube accounts. The Ministry of Home Affairs has recommended 16 Pakistani YouTube channels, such as Dawn News, Samaa TV, Ary News, Geo News, and more, for disseminating "provocative and communally sensitive content." 

The ban came into effect as of 27 April 2025, and the list of YouTube accounts includes some of the biggest news sources in Pakistan, with a combined subscriber count of over 63.08 Million users.

The banned YouTube channels include Dawn News, Irshad Bhatti, Samaa TV, ARY News, Bol News, Raftar, The Pakistan Reference, Geo News, Samaa Sports, GNN, Uzair Cricket, Umar Cheema Exclusive, Asma Shirazi, Muneeb Farooq, Suno News HD, and Razi Naama.

Not only this, a lot of other YouTube accounts based in Pakistan have also been banned, with the most notable one being that of ex-Pakistani cricketer and commentator Shoaib Akhtar. 

When visiting any of these banned accounts, users are shown a message that reads: This content is currently unavailable in this country because of an order from the government related to national security or public order. For more details about government removal requests, please visit the Google Transparency Report (transparencyreport.google.com).