'Greetings after 88 days': Iranians reconnect after 'world's longest internet shutdown'

Iranians isolated by a long internet shutdown imposed by the authorities during the war with the US and Israel expressed joy as social media came back to life in a country where even in normal times access to the outside world remains restricted via censorship of many websites. “Ive never been so happy in my life to see Telegram notifications,” Kian Galvani, an engineering student, wrote on his account on X. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian issued an order to reopen international internet access, Iranian state media reported on Monday, citing an official after a near-90-day blackout. The report cited the head of public relations at Irans Communications Ministry. The mechanism for how and when Iran would reconnect to the global web following the decision was unknown. Authorities initially imposed an internet blackout from January 8 in a crackdown on nationwide anti-government protests which US-based HRANA rights group said killed thousands. Connections were gradually restored in February, before a new blackout was initiated following the start of U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28. The longest internet blackout in the history of the world has ended, greetings after 88 days, Alireza Jafarzadeh, an Iranian editor, posted on his account on Instagram. Iranian Communications and Information Technology Minister Seyyid Sattar Hashemi said on Wednesday that “the Iranian people deserve free communication, a bright future, and a dynamic economy.” “The president’s commitment to the reopening of the internet and restoring communication stability is a clear sign of rationality and standing with the people”, Hashemi added, according to state media. Businesses hit hard by blackout Prolonged shutdowns both restrict internet freedoms and hurt businesses that depend heavily on social media to operate, taking a toll on a fragile economy battered by the war and long-standing US sanctions. Keyumars, an Iranian computer programmer, who asked that only his first name b