Iran's internet restoration has exposed a significant rift within the ruling system, with four hardline members of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace filing a complaint against the newly formed 'special headquarters' that approved the reconnection. As reported by Iran International, the court quickly ordered suspension of the headquarters' decisions pending a final review, while the government moved ahead with reconnection anyway. The dispute centers on a 'special headquarters' set up earlier this month under First Vice President Mohammad-Reza Aref to determine how and when broader access to the global internet should resume after wartime restrictions. According to reports from inside the meeting chaired by Aref, nine members voted in favor of restoring broader internet access, while three opposed it, with opponents including Mohammad-Amin Aghamiri, secretary of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, and Peyman Jebelli, head of Iran's state broadcaster. The backlash intensified after the headquarters voted on Monday to move forward with restoring international internet access.
Iran has fully restored internet access after 88 days of complete shutdown, with President Masoud Pezeshkian issuing an order to reopen international internet access as reported by Iranian state media. Communications and Information Technology Minister Seyyid Sattar Hashemi announced that "the Iranian people deserve free communication, a bright future, and a dynamic economy," calling the president's commitment to reopening "a clear sign of rationality and standing with the people." However, the restoration process remains incomplete, with NetBlocks internet monitoring group reporting that access has recovered to slightly more than 60 percent of normal levels, with connectivity remaining unstable and internet access heavily restricted. As reported by Reuters, the mechanism for how and when Iran would reconnect fully to the global web remains unclear, though analysts suggest the decision was driven at least in part by the economic impact of keeping businesses offline.
The internet cutoff proved devastating for Iran's economy, with estimated daily losses of $30-40 million and indirect losses likely twice that amount, according to a member of Iran's Chamber of Commerce, Afshin Kolahi. About 10 million people have jobs that depend on internet connectivity, according to Communications Minister Sattar Hashemi. During the shutdown, prices spiked dramatically with residents in Tehran paying around $7.50 per gigabyte, though they have now returned to approximately $2.25 for 30 gigabytes, roughly where they were before the protests. The cost of VPN workarounds soared during the shutdown, making them unaffordable for many as the economy was battered by inflation and strikes on key industries. Reuters reports that prolonged shutdowns both restrict internet freedoms and hurt businesses that depend heavily on social media to operate, with many people who ran businesses through Instagram and Telegram "losing everything during this blackout" and "having to start again from far below zero."
The brief reopening of internet access revealed widespread public anger over Iran's worsening economic crisis. As reported by The Guardian, the annual cost of essentials such as vegetable oil (308%), chicken (190%) and rice (170%) had surged dramatically, intensifying pressure on families already battling financial instability. Social media platforms quickly filled with emotional accounts from ordinary citizens struggling to afford basic necessities, with many describing daily life as unbearable and saying household savings were disappearing rapidly amid steep price increases. "Everything is so expensive. It has become a disaster. You leave the market with a broken heart after spending all your savings. It is unbearable. We have no patience left to lead a normal life," a user wrote, according to The Guardian. Reuters reports that businesses are suffering, with people "not able to get in touch with loved ones" and "a sense of being left behind," noting that "a lot has happened in the world" during the isolation period.
President Masoud Pezeshkian defended the government's position by blaming US sanctions and what he described as 'economic warfare' for Iran's financial troubles. He stated that Washington "had moved to economic warfare after failing to bring the government down." According to The Guardian, the Iranian intelligence ministry warned that unrestricted internet access could become a tool for what they termed 'cognitive warfare'. In a statement, it said, "The enemy, defeated on the military front, now focuses its efforts on soft warfare, cognitive warfare, and social provocations." To tackle the crisis, the government announced the formation of a 'resistance economy committee' aimed at controlling price manipulation and addressing market shortages. Figures from the International Monetary Fund suggested that food inflation in Iran had climbed to extremely high levels, pushing overall inflation rates to nearly 70%. The legal challenge drew particular attention because of the people involved, with the four plaintiffs identified as figures affiliated with the ultra-conservative Paydari camp who also serve on the Supreme Council of Cyberspace. Reuters reports that the shutdown was initially imposed from January 8 in a crackdown on nationwide anti-government demonstrations which U.S.-based HRANA rights group said killed thousands, with connections gradually restored in February before a new blackout was initiated following the start of US and Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28.
Public support for continuing internet restrictions appeared to weaken significantly, with a recent survey showing only 9% of citizens backing the controls. Meanwhile, businesses have begun reappearing online, announcing their return with posts on sites like Instagram and Telegram. A gamer and tech influencer in the central city of Isfahan reported that the shutdown had caused him to lose a significant portion of his audience on YouTube and Instagram, where he had spent years building up a large following. "All my views and interactions are way down. I've been erased from the algorithm," he said, adding that his internet connection was still slower than before the shutdown. "The situation is such that many content producers have had their income reduced to zero, have moved on to other jobs, or have been forced to sell their equipment to survive," he said. Despite the restoration, many Iranians remain cautious, with one woman in Tehran expressing disbelief that authorities had restored access, saying she had assumed they would find some justification to prolong the outage. Iran International reports that Neda, an interior designer in Tehran, recalled how internet access improved briefly after the January unrest, only to be restricted again when the war began, saying "As the saying goes, they made us look at death so we would settle for a fever."
