Iranci počeli ponovo da dobijaju pristup internetu

Iranians began regaining Internet access today after authorities ended a months-long blackout. However, users say the connection is slow and dysfunctional in some areas, and YouTube, Instagram and some rainbow apps have been severely limited compared to before the shutdown that began during mass protests in January. The authorities justified the exclusion with demands made after the United States and Israel attacked Iran on February 28.

The authorities' decision to lift some restrictions this week came as Iran and US negotiators appeared to be moving closer to a more permanent truce. However, many Iranians fear that access could be revoked again at any moment. Internet monitoring company Netblocks said that in Iran, the ability of devices to connect to the Internet is at about 86% capacity compared to the time before the shutdown. Internet analysis firm Kentik reported that Internet traffic in Iran is 40 percent of what it was before. Amir Rashidi, an Iranian cyber security analyst, said there were still widespread disconnections and it was too early to say the suspension was over. Around 90 million Iranians were cut off from the internet for most of 2026, one of the longest and most severe national shutdowns in the world. Young people with online careers were left without income, and the loss of jobs and the closure of online businesses contributed to the high economic costs of the war. The outage made it difficult for Iranian families to communicate during the months of unrest and war. At times, phone lines were also cut, then reconnected. Prices soared during the internet blackout, with Tehran residents sometimes paying around $7.50 per gigabyte. Now they are back to around $2.25 for 30 gigabytes, roughly where they were before the January protests. Even then, Iran tightly controlled access to popular social networks, leading many to rely on virtual private networks (VPNs).

Key points

• The authorities' decision to lift some restrictions this week came as Iran and US negotiators appeared to be moving closer to a more permanent truce.
• However, many Iranians fear that access could be revoked again at any moment.
• Internet monitoring company Netblocks said that in Iran, the ability of devices to connect to the Internet is at about 86% capacity compared to the time before the shutdown.
• Internet analysis firm Kentik reported that Internet traffic in Iran is 40 percent of what it was before.
• Amir Rashidi, an Iranian cyber security analyst, said there were still widespread disconnections and it was too early to say the suspension was over.