Iranian authorities have lifted the long-standing ban on Meta-owned messaging app WhatsApp, according to reports carried by state media on Tuesday.
The authorities have voted to end the ban on WhatsApp and Google Play in what appears to be a relaxation in restrictions on the internet across the country. The instant messaging app was blocked amid intense protests following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September 2022.
On the other hand, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and other leading social media platforms remain blocked in the country. Iranian users access these platforms via virtual private networks (VPNs).
The reversal of ban on WhatsApp and Google has gained widespread attention within international media, for Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, whose term began in July, had promised to relax internet restrictions.
“A positive majority vote has been reached to lift limitations on access to some popular foreign platforms such as WhatsApp and Google Play,” IRNA, Iran’s official news agency, stated on Tuesday following a meeting chaired by President Pezeshkian.
The agency cited the federal information minister’s statement confirming the same. “Today the first step in removing internet limitations… has been taken.”
It is still unclear, however, exactly when WhatsApp will be reinstated in the country.
