{"id":348643,"date":"2026-10-08T21:32:18","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T20:32:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/?p=348643"},"modified":"2026-10-08T21:32:18","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T20:32:18","slug":"irans-war-on-starlink-has-entered-a-new-phase","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ncr-iran.org\/en\/news\/society\/irans-war-on-starlink-has-entered-a-new-phase\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran\u2019s War on Starlink Has Entered a New Phase"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A
A Starlink satellite dish mounted on an urban rooftop during sunset<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Four-minute read<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

On October 4, 2026, the Iranian regime\u2019s Foreign Ministry summoned Norway\u2019s ambassador over an unusual dispute. The complaint was not about sanctions, oil or nuclear inspections. It was about internet traffic coming from space.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tehran demanded<\/a> that Norway, whose administration handles relevant Starlink satellite filings at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), help terminate unauthorized Starlink connections inside Iran. The following day, the confrontation escalated further: Mohammad Amin Aghamiri, secretary of Iran\u2019s Supreme Council of Cyberspace, claimed that authorities had successfully disabled Starlink terminals during the January 2026 protests and warned that satellite-internet infrastructure could become a \u201clegitimate military target\u201d if used as an instrument of war.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Whether Tehran actually achieved the comprehensive shutdown Aghamiri claimed remains unverified. What is clear is that Starlink has moved from being a censorship nuisance to a major security problem for the state.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tens of Thousands of Terminals\u2014and a Growing Supply Chain<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n

Nobody outside SpaceX knows the precise number operating in Iran. But independent estimates now converge around at least 50,000 terminals. An earlier estimate from Tehran\u2019s E-Commerce Association put the number of Starlink users at roughly 100,000 as early<\/a> as December 2024. One terminal can serve multiple people, making terminal counts and user counts fundamentally different.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The authorities\u2019 own figures reveal the scale of the underground market.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The regime\u2019s Economic Security Police said in August that it had seized 997 Starlink devices and arrested 163 people in just four months, while confiscating 15 vehicles used to transport equipment. Police said devices were arriving through Azerbaijan and Iraqi Kurdistan in the west and through Qatar, the UAE and Oman by southern maritime routes.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

"If the regime's model of #Internet<\/a> censorship succeeds, it will not remain confined to Iran. It will become a blueprint for authoritarian survival in the twenty-first century and beyond," @MasumehBolurchi<\/a> writes.https:\/\/t.co\/MUPWa702g9<\/a><\/p>\n

— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) May 7, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n