Iran cyberspace council votes to 'lift ban on WhatsApp'

Iran's top council responsible for safeguarding the internet voted Tuesday to lift a ban on the popular messaging application WhatsApp, which has been subject to restrictions for over two years, state media reported.

"The ban on WhatsApp and Google Play was removed by unanimous vote of the members of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace," the official IRNA news agency said.

"Today, we took the first step towards lifting internet restrictions with unanimity and consensus," Minister of Communications Sattar Hashemi said on X.

It was not immediately clear when the decision would come into force.

The move has sparked a debate in Iran, with critics of the restrictions arguing the controls were costly for the country.

"The restrictions have achieved nothing but anger and added costs to people's lives," presidential advisor Ali Rabiei said on X on Tuesday.

Others however warned against lifting the restrictions.

The reformist Shargh Daily on Tuesday reported that 136 lawmakers out of the 290-member parliament sent a letter to the council saying the move would be a "gift to (Iran's) enemies".

The lawmakers called for allowing access to restricted online platforms only "if they are committed to the values of Islamic society and comply with the laws of" Iran.

Iranians have over the years grown accustomed to using virtual private networks, or VPNs, to bypass the internet restrictions.

Other popular social media platforms including Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube remain blocked since they were banned in 2009.

Instagram and WhatsApp were added to the list of blocked applications following nationwide protests that erupted after the September 2022 death in custody of Mahsa Amini.

Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurd, was arrested earlier for an alleged breach of the Islamic republic's dress code for women.

Hundreds of people, including dozens of security personnel, were killed in the subsequent months-long nationwide protests and thousands of demonstrators were arrested.

Iran's president Masoud Pezeshkian, who took office in July, had vowed during campaigning to ease the long-standing internet restrictions.