Iranians greeted the return of international web access with relief and elation after authorities ordered an end to a blackout that had isolated the country from much of the global internet for almost 90 days. Social media accounts that had been quiet lit up again as users shared the moment, even as officials and technical monitors cautioned that connectivity would remain fragile and some services might stay blocked.
State media reported that President Masoud Pezeshkian issued an order to reopen international internet access, citing an official source and the head of public relations at Iran's Communications Ministry. The report did not provide details on the mechanism or timeline for reconnecting to the global web following the decision.
For many Iranians, the return of notifications was an emotional moment. "I’ve never been so happy in my life to see Telegram notifications," engineering student Kian Galvani wrote on his account on X, reflecting the immediate human response to renewed access to messaging and social platforms.
The blackout began on January 8 after authorities moved to curb nationwide anti-government protests. U.S.-based HRANA rights group said the protests had led to thousands of deaths. Connections were partially restored in February, but a fresh shutdown followed the start of U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28.
Iranian editor Alireza Jafarzadeh marked the end of the shutdown with a post on Instagram saying: "The longest internet blackout in the history of the world has ended, greetings after 88 days." The exact phrasing underlines how users perceived the duration and severity of the restrictions.
Officials framed the reopening as a return to normalcy and a sign of support for the public. Communications and Information Technology Minister Seyyid Sattar Hashemi was quoted by state media as saying that "the Iranian people deserve free communication, a bright future, and a dynamic economy." He added that the president's commitment to restoring connectivity and stability signaled rationality and solidarity with the people.
Despite official assurances, independent monitors cautioned that restoration would not be immediate or uniform. Alp Toker, director of internet monitoring group NetBlocks, told Reuters that the process of restoring service could take hours, days, or even weeks in some provinces. He said connectivity remained unstable and that access was still heavily restricted in practice, with platforms such as WhatsApp unavailable without a VPN.
The extended shutdown has had clear economic consequences. Small businesses and entrepreneurs in Iran rely heavily on social media platforms like Instagram and Telegram to reach customers, often as a lower-cost alternative to renting physical storefronts. Keyumars, a computer programmer who requested that only his first name be used for security reasons, told Reuters that many operators "lost everything during this blackout" and now face the challenge of rebuilding from "far below zero - while carrying heavy debts, losses, and lost customers."
Toker highlighted the broader human toll, noting that businesses and families were cut off from communication and that people felt left behind as events outside Iran continued to unfold. "Businesses are suffering, small businesses, people aren’t able to get in touch with loved ones. And there’s also, I think, a sense of being left behind. A lot has happened in the world," he said.
Public voices expressed cautious optimism but also skepticism about the permanence and quality of restored access. Iranian citizen Alireza Naji posted on X that "We are a long way from achieving the world-class version of the internet that the Iranian people deserve… civic and social activities in the heart of this darkness are the pulse of our survival," underscoring continued concern about censorship and restricted civic space.
As connectivity returns, the economic and social fallout from the blackout will likely take time to reverse. Businesses that depended on online channels face the twin burdens of lost revenue and diminished customer relationships, while the technical and policy steps needed to reestablish stable, unfiltered access remain uncertain. For now, the reopening is a first step back toward normal communication, albeit one shadowed by instability and lingering controls.