Amid dispute between the Rouhani Government and other parts of Iran’s regime, authorities have cracked down on the social messaging application Telegram.

Iran has long restricted many communications platforms, but the Russian-developed Telegram is used by about 40 million Iranians. The platform has refused previous demands by authorities to censor content.

However, with officials blaming the spread of protests across Iran in late December and January on social media, hardline agencies, MPs, and the Revolutionary Guards sought a ban on Telegram. President Hassan Rouhani pushed back with general references to the need for open communications as part of the country’s economic and technological development.

On Thursday, the outcome came from an order by the Supreme Cyberspace Council, announced by the Telecommunications Infrastructure Company: “The legal license issued in 2016 to install Telegram CDNs [content delivery networks] in Iran has been canceled and annulled.”

Rouhani’s media advisor Hesamoddin Ashena confirmed the order in a tweet: “The facilities provided to Telegram were based on a conditional agreement but now that the network’s founder has failed to act on his commitments, there’s no reason to continue.”

The bar on Telegram on mobile phones means Iranians will have to access it through the Internet, slowing audio and video content and doubling the cost because of higher internet rates for foreign traffic, imposed by the Government in December 2017.

The TIC said that Telegram will now be routed through international channels “that could consequently reduce the quality of access to this messaging service”.

Last week the Supreme Leader and other officials and state bodies announced that they had deactivated their channels on Telegram, and orders were issued banning the use of the application for official government purposes.

The regime officially released a home-developed application, Soroush, which claims most of the features in Telegram.

Soroush also features emojis denouncing Israel and praising the Supreme Leader and stickers of women carrying signs saying “Death to America”.