Iran’s government could soon roll back some restrictions on a months-long digital blackout that has cut off millions of its citizens from the internet, the official Islamic Republic News Agency said, as diplomatic talks between the US and Tehran gather pace.
The government’s new Special Task Force for the Regulation and Governance of Cyberspace voted Monday "in favour of returning internet access to its pre-January 2026 conditions,” IRNA reported. The task force, set up by President Masoud Pezeshkian and chaired by First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref, oversees sensitive national policy in the digital space.
While IRNA didn’t specify the scale of the planned easing, it said the move would be carried out in a "smart and law-abiding” manner.
The development coincides with diplomatic efforts by Tehran and Washington toward a deal aimed at ending their conflict, which has resulted in the deaths of thousands of Iranians and triggered an energy shock that disrupted the global economy. Iranian authorities had previously signalled the restrictions would persist as long as wartime conditions prevailed.
Iranians have faced two separate episodes of severe digital isolation this year. The first lasted roughly three weeks in January, following a crackdown on anti-government protests; and the current one was imposed after US and Israeli airstrikes on Iranian leaders and infrastructure began February 28.
During both blackouts, authorities routed users onto a localised network walled off from the internet beyond the nation’s borders.
Even before this year’s disruptions, Iran enforced extensive internet restrictions, blocking a range of websites, social media platforms, and messaging apps. Millions of people inside Iran have relied on virtual private networks or been steered toward domestic, state-controlled alternatives.
IRNA added that the decision has been approved by the president but hasn’t yet been formally communicated to the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology for implementation. The report offered no timeframe for when the measures could come into effect. – Bloomberg
