Friday , 29 March 2024

Iranian Officials Call For Unblocking Twitter

RFL/RE – Six Iranian ministers and two lawmakers, all members of the state committee in charge of blocking websites, have issued an open letter to the country’s prosecutor calling for the unblocking of Twitter.


The letter was issued in response to “the growing public demands for unfiltering Twitter to allow the activity of the youth and media in [it],” the government website Dolat.ir reported.

The letter is signed by Communications Minister Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi, Education Minister Mohammad Bathaee, Intelligence Minister Mahmud Alavi, Justice Minister Alireza Avayi, Science Minister Mansur Gholami, and Culture Minister Abbas Salehi, as well lawmakers Ramezanali Sobhanifar and Mohammad Kazemi.

Twitter and Facebook are among the tens of thousands of social-media and news sites blocked by the Iranian establishment.

Despite the blocking, many Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, use Twitter to reach out to supporters and spread their messages.

Many Iranians also use Twitter to share news and information and express themselves.

Iran recently blocked the highly popular communications app Telegram, believed to be used by half of the country’s population.

Yet, many Iranians are still accessing it through antiblocking tools.

With reporting by RFE/RL’s Radio Farda, Dolat.ir and ISNA

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