The rapidly spreading story about Iran’s censorship of Google and Gmail now has to compete with another story: that of Iran undoing the blocking at its ISPs.
Iran’s Google Block An ‘Error’
Several sites around the world picked up on Iran’s blocking of Google. That blocking began on Sunday, as Iranian web surfers quickly found their requests for Google stopped at the ISP level.
Other Iranians discovered Gmail had been likewise restricted from their views. People began to get the word out, and news agencies were able to confirm with the Iranian government that the censorship was taking place.
Hamid Shahriari, the secretary of Iran’s National Council of Information, would not provide any other details in reports. However, it is now being disclosed on sites like News.com.au’s Adelaide Now that the filtering of Google has ceased:
“Due to an error, the Google site was filtered on Sunday evening but the error was corrected and now Google and its different sites like Gmail can be used,” said an official from the state-run communications company.
Iran’s government is no stranger to censorship, or the oppression of journalists. Reporters Without Borders said only through self-censorship do media outlets avoid angering the Middle Eastern state’s leadership. The country’s supreme leader accused Iran’s media of malice and collaboration with enemy media earlier in September.
