Iran restricts Telegram and Instagram over protests

The Iranian government is restricting social media networks that have been used to organise four days of anti-establishment protests, the BBC reported, citing a report from state news agency Irib. The authorities said the temporary restrictions on the apps Telegram and Instagram were imposed to maintain tranquility. 

The protests have been the biggest show of dissent since rallies in 2009. President Hassan Rouhani has said Iranians have the right to protest, but not to cause disorder. The protests began in the north-east as an outcry against economic hardship and rising prices, but turned political in many places, with slogans chanted against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Mr Rouhani and Iran's interventionist foreign policy in the region.