Iran protests face internet blackout and government crackdown continues

When protests broke out across Iran, the government’s initial response was mostly darkness, not dialogue.

Iran in recent days Authorities have imposed sweeping internet and communications blackouts, expanded the use of surveillance drones and deployed security forces to suppress demonstrators, according to analysts and human rights groups in Tehran, which say Iran has developed a playbook designed to suppress dissent before it spreads.

According to global internet watchdog NetBlocks, the nationwide internet outage has been ongoing for five days and connectivity remains at near-zero levels. Local authorities are also disrupting satellite internet such as Starlink to further restrict Iranians’ ability to communicate.

Iran moves quickly to suppress protests before they spread

Analysts say the goal is speed.

“The Islamic Republic has only one answer to the protesters,” Jason Brodsky, a non-resident scholar at the Middle East Institute, told Fox News Digital. “The only way out of this mess he’s created for the Iranian people is to use more violence and more oppression against them.”

Since the beginning of 2026, Iran has been rocked by economic difficulties, political repression, and anti-government protests sparked by anger against the country’s clergy; Demonstrations are spreading far beyond big cities to small towns and rural areas. Frustration with high inflation, unemployment and social restrictions fueled unrest across generations and regions, challenging the regime’s claim that opposition was limited to isolated urban segments.

Brodsky said Iran’s leadership has learned from previous waves of protests that allowing unrest to gain momentum or become visible could quickly spiral beyond its control. In 2019 and 2022, demonstrations expanded rapidly and came under international scrutiny and pressure as images of violence spread online.

He said this experience shaped how the regime responds now.

“This is a very outdated playbook that the Islamic Republic uses,” Brodsky said, describing a layered security response designed to contain the protests early. Iranian police are usually deployed first; More powerful forces, such as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Basij militia, Iran’s volunteer paramilitary force, are being held in reserve.

Aside from communications blackouts and arrests, Iranian authorities are increasingly turning to surveillance technology to track protesters; This includes using drones to monitor crowds and identify individuals.

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Brodsky said the Iranian regime has increasingly relied on aerial surveillance and digital surveillance tools to gather intelligence during demonstrations, allowing security forces to identify participants even after crowds have dispersed.

“They’re trying to gather intelligence on who’s involved,” he said, describing efforts to map protest networks and determine how demonstrations were organized.

United Nations investigators have previously documented Iran’s increasing use of technology-enabled repression, including surveillance drones, facial recognition software and digital surveillance systems aimed at identifying dissidents. Rights groups say data collected during protests is often later used to arrest, intimidate and prosecute.

Demonstrators burn photos of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in front of the Iranian embassy during a rally in support of nationwide protests in Iran on January 12, 2026 in London. (Toby Melville/Reuters)

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Iranian demonstrators gather on a street to protest the devaluation of the currency on January 8, 2026 in Tehran, Iran. (Stringer/WANA/Reuters)

Murders and arrests reportedly increased rapidly over the weekend and early this week. Fox News’ Trey Yingst reported that at least 3,000 people have died, and the real number is likely to be higher. More than 10,000 people were arrested.

By comparison, Iranian security forces killed more than 500 people during a months-long protest crackdown in 2022 and 2023, according to the State Department, and 300 people during a wave of protests in 2019, according to Amnesty International.

Washington weighs options as Iran cracks down on protests

While Trump weighs strike options in Iran, the United States still has a wide range of non-kinetic tools at its disposal.

Information and cyber warfare, particularly Tehran, may be the most effective non-kinetic options as Iran relies on internet blackouts, surveillance, and digital command and control systems to suppress dissent.

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“The United States has a very strong cyber attack capacity,” Brodsky said.

These capabilities were on display in early January, during an operation to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, when the United States launched a cyberattack on Caracas, Venezuela, jamming communications and power supplies.

“It could also disrupt the regime’s command and control apparatus.”

Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, warned that US action to support protesters could backfire if they are poorly targeted or perceived as disconnected from the crackdown on the streets.

he said Attacks that cause civilian casualties or focus on unrelated strategic targets could push Iranians into “survival mode” and reduce rather than fuel protest activity. In contrast, Taleblu argued that actions that directly target the regime’s repressive apparatus, including systems used to block communications, are more likely to be seen and felt by protesters.

“An intermediate option could be kinetic or cyber attacks on the infrastructure supporting the regime’s military intervention in Starlink.”

Brodsky said the United States could also “creatively declassify intelligence to help protesters and give them information about danger and other efforts.”

Trump said he would talk to Elon Musk about restoring internet access in Iran through Musk’s Starlink technology.

Starlink can bypass government-controlled infrastructure but requires physical terminals on the ground; a major restriction in a country where such equipment is illegal and aggressively targeted by security forces.

Iran has also shown a willingness to jam satellite signals and hunt Starlink terminals; This turns the connection into a cat-and-mouse game that carries serious risks for users. Human rights groups warn that Iranians caught using satellite internet will be arrested and face harsh penalties.

But analysts say the latest crackdown has driven many Iranians to challenge rather than fear.

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“There is a growing lack of fear among the Iranian people, and this has become much more palpable and palpable with each round of protests we have seen in recent years. Once the fear factor has eroded, it is very difficult for the regime to put the genie back in the bottle,” Brodsky said. he said.

Thanks to the 12-Day War and the campaign of attacks against Israel’s proxies, “the regime’s deterrence has been eroded,” he added.