Iran Restores Partial Internet Access After Five-Month Blackout
Iran began restoring international internet connections on May 26 after a blackout that started February 28. Partial access returned following economic losses estimated at $80 million per day. Authorities kept domestic services running and offered restricted paid tiers during the outage.
naturalnews.comIran began restoring international internet connections on May 26 after a blackout that started February 28. The outage lasted five months and was the longest recorded by NetBlocks. Partial service returned after Iranian officials ordered reopening of international access.
The blackout disrupted video calls and social-media use for millions inside Iran. ” Diaspora families reported three months without confirmed message delivery on WhatsApp.
Iranian business leader estimated daily losses of $80 million. E-commerce platforms including Digikala, Snappfood, and Aparat cut hundreds of jobs. Roughly 20 percent of internet-dependent workers lost employment during the period. Iranian authorities maintained a domestic intranet for banking and delivery services.
They also issued “white SIM cards” to selected journalists and officials. A paid tier called Internet Pro remained available but was described as expensive and unstable.
During 2022 protests, some Iranians used smuggled Starlink terminals. An estimated 50,000 people relied on the service before Iranian authorities began charging users with espionage. At least one terminal owner was reported killed. Advocates are promoting direct-to-cell satellite technology scheduled for 2027.
Mahsa Alimardani of the Direct-to-Cell Coalition stated the technology’s design will determine whether it can bypass future shutdowns. Iranian officials have said blackouts serve national-security needs. Past outages coincided with lethal force against protesters in 2019 and January 2026.
The government routinely blocks international social-media platforms and independent news sites.
