Iran partially restores internet access after 88-day shutdown

Iranian authorities partially restored internet connectivity on Tuesday after an 88-day shutdown imposed when war erupted with Israel and the United States on February 28.

Monitor NetBlocks confirmed the partial restoration, while sources inside the country and a senior official said home broadband had returned. Mobile internet remains cut.

What has been restored in Iran's internet blackout?

Fixed broadband connections have been partially restored, allowing some Iranians to access international websites from home without a VPN.

Mobile internet remains cut. State media claimed full connectivity had returned for broadband users, but NetBlocks said it was unclear whether this marked a permanent end to what it called the longest nationwide internet shutdown in modern history.

How did Iranians react to the partial internet restoration?

Some Iranians expressed relief on social media as connectivity returned. "YouTube without a VPN!!! Oh my God, am I dreaming?" wrote one user on X.

A 22-year-old woman in Kermanshah said she could open international websites through her home provider, while a Tehran-based user reported his company's service had returned but mobile connections remained blocked. Others said access was still patchy.

Who controls internet access decisions in Iran?

The final say rests with the Supreme National Security Council, led by hardliner Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, according to parliament security commission member Yaghoub Rezazadeh.

President Masoud Pezeshkian, regarded as a moderate, had pushed to end the shutdown, citing its economic damage. However, Iran's judiciary suspended the presidential body he formed on May 12 specifically to oversee the restoration, complicating the picture further.

Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref said on X that "the first step toward free and regulated access to cyberspace has been taken" and that Iranians' demands "will be fulfilled." Supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared in public since his father Ali Khamenei was killed at the start of the war, remains the country's top authority in theory.

What triggered Iran's internet shutdown in the first place?

The February 28 shutdown followed an earlier blackout from January 8, imposed as anti-government protests swept the country. Activists said that closure was designed to conceal the scale of a crackdown that left thousands dead, according to rights groups, and to prevent further demonstrations.

The subsequent wartime shutdown extended that isolation to nearly three months.

Is Iran's internet access fully back to normal?

Not yet. Doug Madory, head of internet analysis at network monitoring firm Kentik, cautioned that the partial restoration needed to be kept in perspective. "Iran has a long way to go to get back to pre-January 8 levels of traffic volumes," he wrote on X.

VPNs were still required to reach some social media platforms, and reports from inside the country described access as uneven across providers and cities.