Senegalese authorities have announced a shutdown of the internet shortly after President Macky Sall postponed the nation’s presidential election indefinitely.

The internet shutdown was announced in a statement on Sunday by Moussa Bocar Thiam, Senegal’s minister of communication, telecommunications and digital affairs, a day after the election was postponed.

“The internet of data mobile phones is temporarily suspended from Sunday, February 4, 2024, at 10 p.m.,” Mr Thiam said, claiming the shutdown was “due to the dissemination of several hateful and subversive messages relayed on social networks in a context of threats of disturbances to public order.”

This followed Mr Sall’s postponement of the election scheduled for February 25, which sparked widespread protests in the country.

The Committee to Protect Journalists expressed concern over the internet shutdown in Senegal amid the postponement of the election, calling on the government to restore internet access.

“Internet shutdowns leave journalists struggling to report the news in a timely manner, to fact check misinformation, and to contact sources safely,” CPJ wrote on X on Monday.

On Sunday, ECOWAS urged the authorities in Senegal to urgently choose a new date for the country’s presidential election that was postponed.