Some experts on China’s tech industry said the government order on WhatsApp and Threads could be related to a new rule last August that requires all apps available in China to register with the government or risk being removed.

Apple has removed apps from its China app store before.

In 2017, Apple removed The New York Times news app saying it violated local regulations - a move that came amid rising news censorship in the world’s second-largest economy. It remains unavailable on Apple’s China App Store.