Iran has lifted the ban on the use of the WhatsApp messenger and the Google Play application store, introduced in 2022, the state news agency IRNA reports. The decision was made by a majority vote at a meeting of the Supreme Council for Information Security of the Islamic Republic.
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«Today we took the first step towards lifting internet restrictions by demonstrating unity. This path will continue,” the Financial Times quotes Iranian Telecommunications Minister Sattar Hashemi as saying on social media X.
The new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, who promised during the election campaign to soften Internet restrictions, has begun to fulfill his promises.
Along with WhatsApp and Google Play, the Instagram service was banned in 2022✴. Even earlier, in 2009, the Facebook✴, X and YouTube platforms were blocked in Iran. TikTok and Telegram are also banned in Iran. However, many Iranian residents continue to use these services, accessing them using various means of bypassing the blocking.