Apple pulls WhatsApp, Threads from store after Beijing order

BEIJING: Apple said on Friday it had removed Meta Platforms’ WhatsApp and Threads from its App Store in China after being ordered to do so by the Chinese government, which cited national security concerns.

Telegram and Signal — two other foreign messaging apps — were also removed from the store on Friday, according to app tracking firms Qimai and AppMagic.

The removal of the four apps suggests growing intolerance on the part of China’s central government towards at least some foreign...