Overview
- Bloomberg, citing activists, reports SpaceX has waived Starlink fees for users in Iran, though the company has not issued an official confirmation.
- Since January 8, international internet traffic has fallen to roughly 1–5% of normal levels, with mobile and satellite connectivity severely disrupted.
- Iran’s state monopoly, the Telecommunication Infrastructure Company, can cut international gateways and has used BGP route withdrawal and VPN fingerprinting to suppress external access.
- Starlink has been outlawed in Iran since 2025, with possession treated as espionage punishable by up to ten years in prison, and authorities have reportedly seized thousands of terminals in raids.
- Military-grade jammers are degrading Starlink links with heavy packet loss, activists estimate more than 50,000 terminals are in the country, and some international calling has been reported restored.