SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service has reportedly dropped its fees, allowing more people in Iran to bypass the government’s most aggressive effort yet to block information from reaching the outside world, according to activists.

 

 

 

Although Elon Musk’s SpaceX has not officially announced the move and did not respond to requests for comment, activists say Starlink has been available free of charge since Tuesday to anyone in Iran with the required receivers.

 

 

 

 

The development comes as Iranian authorities intensify internet restrictions amid a renewed wave of protests and violent crackdowns. Starlink, which provides satellite-based internet access, has become a critical tool for activists seeking to share information despite state-imposed shutdowns.

 

 

 

“Starlink has been crucial,” said Mehdi Yahyanejad, an Iranian activist whose nonprofit organisation, Net Freedom Pioneers, has helped smuggle Starlink units into the country. He pointed to graphic footage that surfaced on Sunday showing rows of bodies at a forensic medical centre near Tehran.

 

 

 

 

“That footage showed a few hundred bodies on the ground, and it came out because of Starlink,” Yahyanejad said in an interview from Los Angeles. “Those videos changed people’s understanding of what is happening because they could see it with their own eyes.”

 

 

 

Starlink remains officially banned in Iran, but its use has grown among protesters and activists determined to keep communication channels open despite government restrictions.