YouTube will remain blocked in Turkey, despite the end to a similar controversial ban on Twitter, after a court backtracked on an earlier ruling to grant access to the video-sharing site.

The court in the capital Ankara on Friday lifted a March 27 government decision blocking access to YouTube, saying the blanket ban violated human rights, and instead restricting 15 videos.

Turkey on Friday fired artillery into Syria to retaliate after cross-border shelling hit its territory without causing injuries or damage, the army said.

"Six shells hit in Yayladadi in Hatay province and caused no damage," said the Turkish armed forces in a statement.

Turkey's secular opposition received a setback Friday in a province-level ruling that rejected a vote recount in contested local elections in the capital Ankara.

The opposition has claimed the Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan rigged the result in the symbolic race last Sunday, where the AKP incumbent claimed a narrow victory.

A Turkish court Friday ruled against a government ban on YouTube that came after the video-sharing website was used to spread damaging leaked audio files from a state security meeting.

An Ankara court ruled against the March 27 block, Hurriyet daily reported online, a day after the government complied with a Constitutional Court ruling and unblocked Twitter in Turkey.

The United States has offered $3 million rewards to find the elusive leaders of a militant left-wing Turkish movement that last year attacked the U.S. embassy in Ankara.

The U.S. State Department said it would offer the money for information leading to the location of three leaders of the Revolutionary People's Liberation Front (DHKP-C): Musa Asoglu, Zerrin Sari, and Seher Demir Sen.

Turkey lifted a much-criticized block on Twitter on Thursday, 24 hours after its highest court had overturned the ban as a breach of the right to free speech.

Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan on March 20 shuttered access to the social media site after it had been used to spread a torrent of anonymous leaks implicating his inner circle in corruption.

Turkey's government faced growing pressure Thursday to quickly implement a top court order to unblock Twitter, which it had banned after corruption claims went viral on the social media site.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered the block on March 20 in the lead-up to last Sunday's key local elections, in which his party won sweeping wins despite the damaging online leaks.

Turkey's top court ruled Wednesday the government violated people's rights by banning Twitter, ordering authorities to unblock the site used to spread corruption allegations against Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The Constitutional Court unanimously ruled that the ban was a breach of free speech safeguarded by the constitution, sending a statement both to the country's telecommunications authority and the communications ministry to "do what's necessary", Turkish television reported.

Turkish riot police Tuesday deployed water cannon against protesters who claimed vote-rigging in weekend local polls in which the Islamic-rooted party of Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared sweeping victories.

About 2,000 supporters of the main secular opposition party had massed outside the elections authority in the capital Ankara, chanting "Thief Tayyip!" and "Ankara, don't sleep. Stand up for your vote!"

Turkey's secular opposition on Tuesday rejected the results of Ankara and Istanbul mayoral elections claimed as victories by the Islamic-rooted party of Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan, citing "irregularities".

More than 1,000 people demonstrated outside the elections authority in the capital Ankara, where the incumbent mayor of Erdogan's ruling party has declared victory with a wafer-thin margin of about one percent.