Iran in limbo: What’s next for country under internet blackout?

Tehran, Iran – Most of Iran’s 90 million-strong colonisation remains chopped disconnected from the remainder of the satellite much than 1 week aft an unprecedented, state-imposed communications blackout amid nationwide protests, which began successful December and rapidly turned deadly.

The Iranian authorities abruptly chopped disconnected each net entree crossed the 31 provinces of the immense state connected the nighttime of January 8 erstwhile protests swelled into wide demonstrations against the clerical leadership, days aft shopkeepers archetypal shuttered their businesses successful downtown Tehran successful protestation implicit rising prices.

Mobile communications were besides blocked and radical were incapable adjacent to telephone rescue services connected that archetypal night.

After the commencement of the blackout, it took authorities respective days to reconstruct an intranet designed to supply entree to section websites and services.

It is unclear erstwhile oregon to what grade entree to the planetary net volition beryllium restored. Local telephone services person been restored but SMS substance messages stay blocked.

Since Tuesday, lone outgoing planetary telephone calls person been reconnected. The authorities continues to nonstop galore one-way substance messages to radical crossed the state daily, urging them not to autumn unfortunate to ploys by “enemies” and to study immoderate suspicious activity.

A antheral stands by the wreckage of a burned autobus successful Tehran’s Sadeghieh Square connected January 15, 2026, pursuing deadly protests crossed Iran, initially caused by economical grievances [Atta Kenare/AFP]

Foreign ‘elements’ blamed

The authorities has not released authoritative figures for the fig of radical killed during clashes betwixt protesters and authorities forces, mostly connected the nighttime of January 8 and January 9. The wide cited United States-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) enactment the decease toll astatine 2,615 connected Wednesday this week, though Iran’s authorities claims that is an exaggeration.

In an interrogation with Fox News connected Wednesday this week, Iran’s ‍Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi denied that Tehran had immoderate plans to execute protesters. During that interview, helium downplayed the decease toll being reported.

“I surely contradict the numbers and figures they person said. It is an exaggeration, it is simply a misinformation campaign, lone to find excuses, lone to bash different aggression against Iran,” Araghchi said, adding that the fig was being exaggerated to impact US President Donald Trump successful the conflict.

While Iranian authorities person confirmed that protesters, including children, women and unarmed civilians, are among those who person died, officials assertion “terrorists” and “elements” trained and equipped by the US, Israel and their allies are down each of the wide killings arsenic good arsenic the “riots” that saw authorities buildings attacked, and nationalist spot burned crossed the country.

The Iranian authorities person not confirmed the killings of protesters by authorities forces. Instead, they person conversely claimed that members of the Iranian forces were killed, including by being burned oregon beheaded.

Al Jazeera cannot independently verify the casualty figures due to the fact that of the communications blackout.

At an exigency gathering of the United Nations Security Council connected Thursday, and successful communications with the UN and planetary stakeholders, Iranian authorities placed the blasted for deaths during the protests connected the US and Israel, saying they, successful effect, hijacked protests that started peacefully successful absorption to a rapidly deteriorating economical situation.

The UN has emphasised that unit indispensable not beryllium utilized against protesters. At the aforesaid time, it has besides opposed immoderate signifier of equipped involution amid persistent concerns that Trump could onslaught Iran arsenic helium has threatened to do.

‘No mercy’ for rioters

The streets of Tehran and different cities crossed the state person been comparatively quiescent successful the aftermath of the deadly protests. But galore whitethorn fearfulness what is to come.

There is simply a dense beingness of information forces connected the streets, wherever countless checkpoints and equipped patrols person been acceptable up.

The authorities has besides organised monolithic counter-demonstrations crossed the state during the past respective days and has held nationalist funerals for the killed information forces successful galore cities, including Tehran.

State tv has referred to those participating successful these displays “the existent radical of Iran” portion Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei proclaimed that Iranians participating successful state-organised demonstrations “diffused the crippled by overseas enemies that was to beryllium implemented by section mercenaries”.

The judiciary has acceptable up courts and said it volition prioritise protest-related cases, with Chief Justice Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei pledging “no mercy” volition beryllium shown to “rioters”.

An Iranian pistillate holds a representation of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a ceremonial of information forces unit killed successful caller protests successful Tehran, connected January 14, 2026 [Atta Kenare/AFP]

Most deadly protests successful years

Late connected Wednesday, Trump said helium had received assurances that the Iranian authorities would not transportation retired executions of protesters.

Iranian authorities media rejected reports by overseas media outlets that a young antheral had been sentenced to execution for participating successful the unrest and could beryllium hanged soon.

In his archetypal interrogation with authorities tv aboriginal this week to code the radical aft the protests, President Masoud Pezeshkian chose to absorption connected condemning convulsive “terrorists” and engaging successful economical reform, making nary notation of the information that the full state remained gripped by a state-imposed integer blackout.

The Pezeshkian medication has begun rolling retired physics coupons worthy nether $7 per idiosyncratic each period for 4 months to bargain indispensable goods subsidised by the authorities arsenic rampant ostentation continues to erode nationalist purchasing power.

This is not the archetypal clip that Iran has witnessed protests successful caller years. People accidental they are aggravated astir corruption, mismanagement, economical hardship, devaluation of the currency and eroding societal freedoms.

In September 2022, a young pistillate named Mahsa Amini, aged 22, was arrested successful Tehran for allegedly wearing her hijab improperly. She collapsed portion successful custody and died successful infirmary a fewer days later.

Her decease caused nationalist outrage and wide protests successful Iran that lasted for respective weeks. The slogan “woman, life, freedom” was chanted successful the streets. HRANA reported successful October 2022 that 200 radical died and astir 5,500 radical were arrested during those protests.

But this latest question of protests, which started with a fewer shopkeepers successful Tehran successful December, has been the biggest successful caller years and astir surely the astir deadly.