X removes badge from Iranian FM spokesperson account
Shafaq News- Tehran
Iran’s Foreign Ministry stated on Tuesday that the social media platform X had removed the blue verification badge from the account of its spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei.
In a post on X, he described the action as arbitrary, accusing the platform of "selective censorship and digital piracy." The step, he argued, "aimed at suppressing the truth about the U.S. illegal war against Iran.”
X has now removed the blue check from Iran's MFA Spokesperson’s account—after stripping the Ministry and Minister's verified badges—despite our full Premium+ payments. This arbitrary de-verification fits X’s pattern of selective censorship and American digital piracy, aimed at…
— Esmaeil Baqaei (@IRIMFA_SPOX) May 5, 2026
The move followed the removal of verification badges from the ministry and the foreign minister’s accounts, despite maintaining a full subscription to the platform’s Premium+ service. In February, X also removed the verification badge of several Iranian officials.
