4 GOP senators ask Twitter to ban Iran leaders from platform

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Four Republican senators are asking Twitter to ban Iranian leaders from the social media platform in order to comply with U.S. sanctions against the regime.

In a letter to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, the lawmakers -- Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas, Marco Rubio of Florida, Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee -- argue the site is violating President Trump's sanctions on the Islamic Republic by conducting business with Iran.

“All Americans — including you and Twitter -- are prohibited from ‘the making of any contribution or provision of ... goods or services’ to them,” the senators wrote.

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They asked Dorsey to ban the accounts of Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif. Trump's 2019 executive order imposes sanctions on Khamenei personally, as well as senior military leaders and those acting on his behalf.

"As the leader of the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism -- directly responsible for the murder of hundreds of U.S. citizens - the Ayatollah and any American companies providing him assistance are entirely subject to U.S. sanctions laws," the senators wrote.

"While the First Amendment protects the free speech rights of Americans – and Twitter should not be censoring the political speech of Americans – the Ayatollah enjoys zero protection from the United States Bill of Rights," the letter continued.

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The group noted the Twitter has verified Zarif's account. Twitter did not respond to a Fox News request for comment.

The four lawmakers argued that even though President Barack Obama's created an exception for services and software incident to Internet-based communications, the rules don't apply to Iranian government officials.

They noted that Iran doesn't allow its own people to access certain social media platforms.

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The senators said they would provide copies of the letter to Trump, the Treasury and Justice Departments and the U.S. attorney in the Northern District of California, the area where Twitter is headquartered.

The letter comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran following a U.S. drone strike that killed a top Iranian general and Iranian airstrikes in response that injured more than 60 American troops.