Iran pushes forward with a government-controlled national internet

Iran is planning to create a domestic internet network with access limited to a curated list of approved websites.

According to The Guardian, Iranian state broadcaster IRIB has published a list of sites that will remain accessible inside the country. These include domestic search engines, mapping and navigation services, messaging apps, and even a local streaming platform described as an Iranian version of Netflix.

The list illustrates the scale of Iran’s efforts to build a so-called national internet, which would be government-controlled and largely disconnected from the global web.

One of the biggest challenges to this system remains Starlink terminals, which connect directly to the internet via low-Earth-orbit satellites and have reportedly been smuggled into Iran in large numbers over the past two years. Users relying on these terminals face serious personal risks, the report notes.

The move comes amid growing unrest in the country. Protests began in late December 2025 following a sharp devaluation of the Iranian rial and intensified after renewed calls for demonstrations in early January.