June 17, 2022
A conservative deputy in the Majlis has publicly criticized the Supreme Leader, though he carefully avoided using his name.
On October 2, the Iranian Labor News Agency (ILNA) quoted Reza Mir-Tajeddini, a conservative member of the Majlis, as saying, “Not only the Majlis is not after restricting Internet access, but even the ban on Twitter should be lifted so revolutionaries can spread our message around the world using the platform.”
Mir-Tajeddini then added, “Why should Twitter be banned in Iran when the country’s officials are using it? If it is bad, it should be banned for everyone, but given that officials are using it, everyone else should also have access to the platform.”
Mir-Tajeddini was alluding to the fact that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenehi has several Twitter accounts in various languages, and other civilian officials and military officers, including President Ebrahim Raisi, Judiciary Chairman Qolam-Hossain Ejai, Majlis Speaker Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf and national security chief Ali Shamkhani also use Twitter and other social media platforms for their messaging.
Iran has banned all major social media apps except Instagram, where some 22 million Iranians are reportedly active. More than twice as many Iranian accounts are active on Telegram, where sending video, audio and text is much easier. Telegram is blocked, but people use VPNs to get around that.