Iran Targets Starlink as a “Weapon of War,” Signaling Further Internet Restrictions

An Official Claims Satellite Internet Could Undermine Iran's Online Sovereignty Amid War With the United States and Israel

TEHRAN, Iran – Iranian authorities have vowed to continue cracking down on the Starlink satellite internet service, along with further restrictions on the global internet as the US-Israeli war against Iran continues.

Elon Musk's Starlink, which lacks filtering and heavy restrictions imposed by Tehran, is illegal in Iran for national security reasons. The use of satellite internet services and the distribution of Starlink terminals is subject to fines and imprisonment.

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end of list It is one of several measures imposed by Iranian authorities since the United States and Israel launched strikes against the country on February 28, sparking a protracted and economically punishing war between the countries.

Iran's population of 90 million in 2026 has twice been subjected to two long government-imposed global internet blackouts – for three weeks during nationwide protests in January and for 88 days at the start of the current war.

Mohammad Amin Aghamiri, the secretary of the Supreme National Council of Cyberspace, described Starlink as a tool for fighting enemies.

He said: This is a tool used to command and control the enemy, espionage and gather information. We have several systems to disconnect Starlink satellite terminals.

He did not elaborate on what measures or devices were used to jam Starlink, but one was used during the January protests and officials were prepared to share the technology with aligned countries.

Iran is among several countries that have banned or restricted Starlink due to national security concerns.

For using or possessing Starlink, the initial penalty is between six months and two years. Importing and distributing devices is punishable by up to five years. Individuals may even face the death penalty if charged with national security or espionage.

Aghamiri asked Iranians to use internal platforms supported by the authorities of the National Information Network. He also advocated a tiered access model that envisions protected international access for select groups—such as businessmen, researchers, and journalists—during periods of Internet restriction.

A Tehran-based internet and telecommunications expert, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Al Jazeera that Iranian authorities are using a combination of measures to block Starlink connections.

This involves the use of multiple jammers of various configurations to disrupt service, along with fake GPS locations to slow down the launch of new devices. They can also detect Internet protocols associated with Starlink when connecting to local apps and services.

Authorities also try to physically intercept terminals using patrolling and searching drones or attacking terminals.

In June, Israeli politician Naftali Bennett claimed that Israel had smuggled tens of thousands of Starlink devices to Iran during his tenure as prime minister between 2021 and 2022 to aid anti-government protesters.

As of 2023, Iran has also pursued the issue at the International Telecommunication Union's Radio Regulations Board, trying to pressure the United States and Norway, which play a role in the satellite network regulatory cases, to freeze transmissions.

On October 4, Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned Norway's ambassador to Tehran to protest what it described as a lack of action on Starlink's unauthorized operations.

At the end of September, Deputy Minister of Technology Mohammad Hafez Hekami warned officials at a government meeting that Starlink, due to the unlimited access to the Internet it provides, could represent the "last nail on the coffin of Iran's [virtual space] sovereignty" if it becomes common.

He noted that the government blocked the Telegram messaging app after livelihood protests in 2017-2018, but had to resort to a one-week internet blackout for the first time during nationwide protests in 2019. WhatsApp and Instagram were blocked after the 2022-23 protests, which preceded a near-total shutdown during the January 2026 protests.

If this trend continues, we will have to cut the power in the next crisis because Starlink, as a new tool to evade government rule, has ruled that it is basically not even connected to our network.

From 2022, Starlink will allow Iranians to send videos of protests abroad despite government restrictions. It is said that tens of thousands of terminals have been smuggled into the country since then, but the exact statistics are not known.

Due to the risk of government repression, limited access and financial costs, most people still do not have access to Starlink and must rely on Iran's domestic internet, which blocks most international services and thousands of websites. American sanctions and banking restrictions make it difficult for Iranians to access global services.

To bypass many obstacles, most Iranians use virtual private networks (VPN) and other methods to access free internet. But these tools can slow down connections, be expensive, or provide insecure connections that compromise user data, making them harder to access during periods of government-imposed blackouts.

After a relative reduction in violence since a June memorandum of understanding that ultimately ended without a permanent cease-fire between the United States and Iran, further restrictions are possible in the future if the war escalates, officials said.

Government agencies deliberately disrupt the Internet to supposedly protect people and national assets from cyber attacks, government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani said at a press conference on Tuesday.

"Obviously, due to the importance of our databases and Internet-based services, decision-making bodies sometimes have to slow down the Internet speed." "We don't deny that," he said.

Officials claim they are considering removing restrictions on some platforms, though no action has been taken yet.

Government-linked media released a policy and governance framework document late on Tuesday that Mr. Aghamiri of the Cyberspace Council said had been under review for nearly two years but remained confidential due to security concerns.

The document gave no timetable for the reopening of any platform, and media reports said implementation had been stalled by fighting and protests.

Google Play and WhatsApp could potentially be unblocked, the document said, while YouTube and Telegram would have to negotiate with Iran and accept certain conditions set by authorities to unblock them. Such actions are considered highly unlikely by the social media giants.