Twitter deletes Iran’s Khamenei tweet criticizing US, UK COVID-19 vaccines

The tweet has since been taken down on Khamenei’s English and Arabic accounts. (File/AFP)

• The tweet follows a ban on importing the vaccines from the two countries
• Twitter said the tweet violated the social media platform’s rules

DUBAI: Social media giant Twitter has removed a tweet by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei that questions the COVID-19 vaccines from the US and the UK.

The tweet follows a ban on importing the vaccines from the two countries, with Khamenei saying they were “completely untrustworthy.”

“The import of American and British vaccines is prohibited… It is not unlikely they would want to contaminate other nations,” the Iranian leader said in a speech, which was also posted on Twitter.

He also said: “Given our experience with France’s HIV-tainted blood supplied, French vaccines aren’t trustworthy either.”

The tweet has since been taken down on Khamenei’s English and Arabic accounts, but is still available on his Persian account.

Twitter said the tweet violated the social media platform’s rules.

Soleimani’s shadow

Qassem Soleimani left a trail of death and destruction in his wake as head of Iran’s Quds Force … until his assassination on Jan. 3, 2020. Yet still, his legacy of murderous interference continues to haunt the region

Enter

keywords