Iran minister says 'impossible' to block information by banning apps

Iran's telecoms minister said today it was "impossible to block citizen's access to information", a day after the conservative-dominated judiciary banned the hugely popular Telegram messaging app.

Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi's comments on Twitter highlighted differences of opinion between the government of reformist President Hassan Rouhani and ultra-conservatives who control the judiciary and security services.

"Even if we ban the use of software, other software will be found and information will start to circulate freely again," Jahromi wrote.

"Technology is not intrinsically guilty, corrupt, or deviant," he added. "It is human beings who misuse it to promote crime and corruption in the virtual world, just as they do in real life."