Iran blocks UK Foreign Office website

From the Beeb:

22 December 2011

The Iranian government has blocked access to the British embassy website for people in Iran, William Hague says.

The UK foreign secretary called on Iran's censors to reverse the "counter-productive and ill-judged" move.

He said it showed Tehran was determined to hide the "international community's legitimate concerns about Iran's policies and behaviour" from Iranians.

Mr Hague said Britain would continue to "engage with the Iranian people, including through the internet".

In a statement, Mr Hague said: "Britain's website in Iran has now been added to the list of thousands of other internet sites deliberately censored by the Iranian authorities."

He said the move would make it harder for Iranians to access information about visiting Britain and that it was "further proof to the rest of the world the Iranian government's dire record on freedom of speech and human rights in general".

'Anti-British rhetoric'

The Foreign Office website recommends against all but essential travel to Iran and against any travel to some parts of the country.

It states: "There has been a dramatic increase in anti-British rhetoric from parliamentarians and demonstrators. The Iranian parliament and Guardian Council voted on November 27 and 28 respectively to expel the British Ambassador to Iran.

"During a demonstration on November 29 the British Embassy in Tehran was attacked, entered and set on fire. British nationals have been arbitrarily detained in Iran in 2010 and 2011."...

Much more on the BBC here.