Iranian President Orders Restoration of International Internet Access After 87 Days

The Iranian government will restore international internet access, which had been blocked since the outbreak of war with the United States and Israel.

According to local media, including Iran International, on the 25th (local time), President Masoud Pezeshkian of Iran ordered the restoration of international internet access to the level it was before January. Sattar Hashemi, Iran's Minister of Information and Communications Technology, stated in an interview with the local daily newspaper Shargh that the process of restoring internet access has begun.

On the 25th (local time) in Tehran, the capital of Iran. Photo by EPA Yonhap News

It has not been specified exactly when or how Iran will reconnect to the international internet. The semi-official ISNA news agency reported that the measure is scheduled to take effect on the 27th.

Fars News Agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), raised questions about whether the government has the authority to issue such an order, noting that the internet restrictions were implemented by the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC). However, a few hours later, in an editorial, the agency described the resumption of internet access as a necessary decision for technical and security reasons, and assessed that, with improvements in the cyber environment, such a measure would have been implemented 'sooner or later' regardless. The editorial also criticized some reform-leaning media outlets for using the issue of internet blocking to deepen internal divisions. Iran International explained that even IRGC-affiliated media, which had previously questioned the legitimacy of the measure, subsequently changed their stance and supported the move, indicating that the restoration of internet access in Iran appears to be underway.

As the ceasefire negotiations between the United States and Iran approach their final stage, there is speculation that Iran's move to restore international internet connectivity is a signal of easing internal controls. Iranian authorities blocked internet access nationwide on January 8, citing security concerns as anti-government protests spread across the country. While access gradually normalized from February, it was blocked again on February 28 when war broke out with the United States and Israel. According to the digital monitoring group NetBlocks, most Iranians have been unable to access the internet for 87 days, with only a few able to connect through expensive virtual private networks (VPNs).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.