It has recently emerged that Iranian-based users are unable to use GitHub. The recently-imposed geoblock is due to U.S. sanctions against the country.

GitHub has been caught up in the U.S.-Iran conflict with the coding repository now being banned for Iranian users. The American tech firm is sending emails to its Iranian user base telling them that they cannot access the website any longer.

The message reads, “Due to US trade controls law restrictions, your GitHub account has been restricted. For individual accounts, you may have limited access to free GitHub public repository services for personal communications only.”

The surprising move has been met with significant criticism. Many have said that the ban outright discriminates against Iranians who have nothing to do with their government’s activities. Github is generally the website-of-choice for programmers, a place where they can store code and collaborate on projects. The block essentially leaves Iranians in the shadows from the rest of the programming community.

One Reddituser (u/erfannia) posted recently urging users to contribute to a repo meant to demonstrate support for Iranians to use GitHub. The repo currently has a long list of supporters with various networks intended to fight the block and help Iranians not lose contact with the community at large.

GitHub has long been criticized for being involved in politics and blocking users. Run by an American company, the platform supports many open-source projects despite being a centralized platform. There have been some calls for creating a decentralized alternative to the version control website, but it has largely fallen on deaf ears—now, however, these calls have been intensifying yet again as the Iranian ban continues to outrage many users.

A better GitHub is possible. Let’s hope the company fixes the problem it created. If not, we may soon see an uncensorable, decentralized alternative come about.

Do you believe we need to have a decentralized alternative to GitHub? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.