Iran Blocks British Embassy Website

Foreign Secretary William Hague said that the Iranian authorities have blocked the British Embassy website in an attempt to censor communications with Iranian citizens.

“Britain’s website in Iran has now been added to the list of thousands of other internet sites deliberately censored by the Iranian authorities," said Hague.

The action is counter-productive and ill-judged, he said.

"It will also make it harder for Iranian nationals to access information about visiting the UK. And it is further proof to the rest of the world the Iranian government’s dire record on freedom of speech and human rights in general," said Hague.

This action will not deter Britain from continuing to engage with the Iranian people, including through the internet, said Hague.

Britain and Iran have almost completely severed diplomatic ties after the UK banned Iran's financial system from doing business with British banks. An attack on the British embassies in Teheran further complicated relations and the UK has expelled all Iranian diplomats amid fears that the country is building a nuclear weapons industry.

Cyprus has already paid a high price for Iran's weapons industry after 98 containers of confiscated arms blew up at Mari naval base in July 2011. The weapons were seized by the government in 2009 en route to Syria on the Monchegorsk ship and public committee found President Demetrist Christofias responsible for delaying their destruction in an attempt to appease Syria and Iran.

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