Outage piles pressure on regime as Iranian security forces reported to have killed at least 45 since protests started
Iran was plunged into a complete internet blackout on Thursday night as protests over economic conditions spread nationwide, increasing pressure on the country’s leadership.
While it was unclear what caused the internet cut, first reported by the internet freedom monitor NetBlocks, Iranian authorities have shut down the internet in response to protests in the past.
NetBlocks had reported outages in the western city of Kermanshah earlier in the day, as authorities intensified their crackdown against protesters. The Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR) said on Thursday that Iranian security forces had killed at least 45 protesters, including eight children, since the demonstrations began in late December.
Shopkeepers heeded calls from seven Kurdish political groups for a general strike on Thursday, closing their doors in Kurdish regions and dozens of other cities around Iran. Demonstrations reached all 31 provinces on Thursday as the protest movement showed no signs of abating.
