"Khamenei's Blue Badge?"... U.S. Civil Group Protests 'X Premium Account'

Long Posts and High-Definition Video Uploads Available
X Criticized for Violating Iran Sanctions

Supreme Leader of Iran, Mostafa Khamenei's X account. X capture

It has been revealed that Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei, recently elected as Iran's new Supreme Leader, holds a paid account on the social networking service X (formerly Twitter). This has sparked criticism that X has violated U.S. sanctions against Iran.

On March 12 (local time), Mojtaba Khamenei's official X account, '@Rahbarenghelab_', was marked with the 'blue check mark'—a paid subscriber-exclusive verification badge commonly referred to as the 'blue badge.' By subscribing to X's premium service, users are no longer subject to the basic 280-character limit, allowing for longer posts, and can upload lengthy, high-definition videos. Additionally, posts from paid subscribers are prioritized at the top of search results and other content feeds.

Khamenei's camp appears to have subscribed to the premium service to maximize the promotional effect, such as fully delivering their messages to more users. In response, the U.S. nonprofit watchdog 'Tech Transparency Project' (TTP) told CNBC, the U.S. business news outlet, that this constituted a "clear violation of sanctions."

The group further criticized, "For the past three years, X has generated revenue by providing premium services to a number of U.S.-sanctioned individuals with ties to terrorism. Now, the same is happening with the leader of a country currently at war with the United States who is also subject to sanctions."

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) have imposed extensive sanctions against the Iranian government. As a result, unless U.S. companies receive special licenses or approval from the government, all commercial and financial transactions with sanctioned individuals or entities are strictly prohibited.

SpaceX, the parent company of X, did not respond to requests for comment. Last month, TTP also released a report pointing out that major Iranian individuals subject to sanctions were holding paid accounts on X. After media outlets began covering the report, X removed verification badges from a significant number of these accounts.

On this day, Mojtaba Khamenei made strong statements through X, declaring, "I assure everyone that we will not abandon the quest for vengeance for the blood of the martyrs," and, "The leverage of closing the Strait of Hormuz must continue to be utilized."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.