Tehran (Sputnik) – Iranian Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stopped using the telegram messenger and domestic alternatives foreign application will be used instead.
“In order to protect national interests and addressing the telegram monopoly, according to news portal [Khamenei’s] management is responsible for keeping Ayatollah Hamenei publications in the telegram, ceases from now on,” Khamenei’s office, noting that the move was also aimed to support national messaging applications.
Iranian authorities have taken a number of measures to limit the activities of the telegram in the country due to the failure of the company to transfer its servers in Iran. On December 31, 2017, Tehran has blocked the instant messenger on the background of the nationwide protests in the country. The ban was lifted two weeks later, however, voice calls to the Telegram remained blocked.
On Sunday, the Iranian Ministry of education issued a Directive banning the use of foreign messengers such as telegram in the public schools of the district.
The decision of the Iranian leadership comes just days after a Russian court has decided to ban the telegram across the country after the Federal security service (FSB) has asked a technology company to provide the Agency with keys to prevent terrorist acts in Russia, as envoy is believed to be widely used by terrorists. The court pointed out that the telegram will remain locked in Russia, while it provided encryption keys for the Russian authorities.
In 2017, telegram the founder and CEO Pavel Durov stated that the 40 million citizens of Iran used the app in a month, making it one of the most popular social networks in the country.
Sourse: sputniknews.com