Lots of :) mobile phone users may be turning :( in Iran as the country's judiciary has made a call to cut off popular messaging services WhatsApp, Viber and Tango, Al-Monitor reported.
In an open letter, Iran's top prosecutor ordered Communications Minister Mahmoud Vaezi to enforce the ban, which has been in the works for months. In the letter, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei argued that the Communications Ministry had agreed to shut down the networks and offer substitutes months ago, but had not made any progress.
Iran's WhatsApp ban in May caused a rift between elements of the government, as President Hassan Rouhani vetoed the move.
Mohseni-Ejei threatened that the judiciary would use its own powers if Vaezi's ministry did not act to block the services in one month, Al-Monitor said. The latest blow-up apparently comes after jokes about former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini circulated on social media. Citing a Revolutionary Guard commander, Al-Monitor said 11 people had been arrested on Sept. 21 for writing jokes about Khomeini.
