This is the most severe internet shutdown recorded since at least 2019, according to the London-based internet accessibility watchdog NetBlocks. More than 90 million Iranians no longer have access to online information in a country where independent media are under pressure and virtually non-existent, and even face repression in exile. The country ranks 176th out of 180 countries in the RSF 2025 World Press Freedom Index.

“Previous shutdowns imposed by the regime during protests in November 2019 and demonstrations following the death of Mahsa Amini in September 2022 suggest that the authorities are once again using internet access as a tool to maintain order at a time when chaos looms due to war with Israel. This shutdown has plunged the population into an information blackout and is completely unacceptable. It also prevents the outside world from communicating with the people and journalists on the ground. RSF condemns this flagrant violation of the Iranian people’s right to reliable and diverse sources of information, which is particularly vital in times of conflict.

During the protests against the Iranian regime sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in September 2022, the authorities drastically restricted access to the social media platforms Instagram and WhatsApp. This orchestrated Internet blackout was accompanied by waves of repression targeting media professionals, and RSF investigated how the deliberate manipulation of the internet connection targeted journalists. Since September 2022, over 100 journalists have been interrogated, detained, or imprisoned. Sixteen of them remain behind bars to this day due to their work, alongside 19 other journalists who were imprisoned before the protests began.