Iran lifts ban on WhatsApp and Google Play

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

The reformist government of Masoud Pezeshkian has lifted Iran’s ban on WhatsApp and Google Play, in a first step towards easing internet restrictions in the nation of 85mn people.

A high-level meeting chaired by the president on Tuesday overcame resistance from hardline factions within the Islamic regime, Iranian media reported, as the government seeks to reduce pressures on civil society.

“Today, we took the first step towards lifting internet restrictions by demonstrating unity,” Sattar Hashemi, Iran’s minister of telecommunications, wrote on X. “This path will continue.”

This move comes after Pezeshkian refused to enforce a hijab law recently ratified by the hardline parliament that would have imposed tougher punishments on women choosing not to observe a strict dress code.

His government has also quietly reinstated dozens of university students and professors who had previously been barred from studying or teaching.

The Islamic regime is grappling with mounting economic, political and social pressures both at home and across the Middle East, particularly after the unexpected collapse of the Syrian government of Bashar al-Assad, which was a crucial regional ally. 

The regime has a long history of weathering crises and maintaining power. But the convergence of domestic and foreign challenges has prompted questions about whether the leadership would respond by tightening controls over the population — or embracing reforms.

Hardliners argue that the internet is a tool used by adversaries such as the US and Israel to wage a “soft war” against the Islamic republic. Reformists contend that repression only worsens public discontent.

Pezeshkian, who won the presidential election in July, campaigned on promises to improve economic and social conditions, with a particular focus on easing restrictions on women’s dress and lifting internet censorship.

Hardliners had imposed restrictions on platforms such as X, Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Telegram and Instagram, but Iranians continued to access them through VPNs widely available in domestic markets.

Reformist politicians have accused hardliners of hypocrisy, claiming some of them both enforce internet censorship and profit from the sale of VPNs through alleged links with companies offering them.

Ali Sharifi Zarchi, a pro-reform university professor recently reinstated to his position, described Tuesday’s decision as “a first step” that was “positive and hopeful”. However, he added: “It should not remain limited to these two platforms.”