Twitter has suspended the official account of Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, citing that it violated the website's rules against impersonation.

An official at Iran's oil ministry stated (anonymously) that the account's suspension could be linked to sanctions, as Minister Zanganeh was personally sanctioned by the United States on October 26.

According to a spokesperson for Twitter, "the account was suspended for violation of the Twitter rules against impersonation", without providing any additional details. The social media platform's safety policy states that "accounts that pose as another person, brand, or organization in a confusing or deceptive manner may be permanently suspended under Twitter’s impersonation policy”.

The Iranian Oil Ministry has yet to formally respond to this suspension, with the ministry's official news service Shana, reporting that the account belonged to Zanganeh.