The US government seized the domains of 92 news websites apparently operated by the Iranian government, the Department of Justice announced on Wednesday.
The websites, which were hosted by US companies, published disinformation to American and international audiences.
“Iran cannot be allowed to hide behind fake news sites,” said David Anderson, the US attorney for the Northern District of California, in a press release.
According to the US department, four of the websites were controlled by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to target US audiences. All of them portrayed themselves as independent news outlets.
The others focused on the Middle East, Western Europe and Southeast Asia, according to the Department of Justice.
The web pages now show a Department of Justice notice reading “THIS WEBSITE HAS BEEN SEIZED."
