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| Tehran blocks access to Facebook | |
| (about 13 hours later) | |
| Iran has briefly blocked access to social networking site Facebook ahead of June's presidential elections. | |
| The move was aimed at stopping supporters of reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi from using the site for his campaign. | |
| Facebook, which says it has 175m users worldwide, expressed its disappointment over the reported ban. | |
| Tehran reinstated access to the website after a few hours, but made no official comment about the censoring. | |
| 'Access not possible' | 'Access not possible' |
| "Access to the Facebook site was prohibited several days ahead of the presidential elections," Iranian news agency Ilna reported. | |
| Mr Mousavi was Iran's prime minister when the post was abolished in 1989 | Mr Mousavi was Iran's prime minister when the post was abolished in 1989 |
| It said that "according to certain Internet surfers, the site was banned because supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi were using Facebook to better disseminate the candidate's positions". | It said that "according to certain Internet surfers, the site was banned because supporters of Mir Hossein Mousavi were using Facebook to better disseminate the candidate's positions". |
| CNN staff in Tehran reported that people attempting to visit the site received a message in Farsi that said: "Access to this site is not possible." | CNN staff in Tehran reported that people attempting to visit the site received a message in Farsi that said: "Access to this site is not possible." |
| Facebook expressed disappointment that its site was apparently blocked in Iran "at a time when voters are turning to the Internet as a source of information about election candidates and their positions". | Facebook expressed disappointment that its site was apparently blocked in Iran "at a time when voters are turning to the Internet as a source of information about election candidates and their positions". |
| Mir Hossein Mousavi, a former prime minister, is seen as one of the leading challengers to incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the 12 June elections. | Mir Hossein Mousavi, a former prime minister, is seen as one of the leading challengers to incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the 12 June elections. |
| His page on Facebook has more than 5,000 supporters. | His page on Facebook has more than 5,000 supporters. |