Nearly 100 Starlink satellites have been activated in Iran as protests continue to rage on. SpaceX founder Elon Musk then expressed that he would do so to advance the Internet freedom and free flow of information for Iranians.
Bridging the Iranians to the World
Iran's government has been known to restrict internet access as well as certain social media sites. Starlink will provide a way for Iranians to access the web through its satellite-based broadband service, as mentioned by Space.
Protests are still ongoing as Iranian women go in public with their hair exposed, which goes against the country's cultural beliefs and practices. Musk took notice when a photo regarding the matter was posted on Twitter back in September.
100 days have passed, and the protests are still ongoing. Meanwhile, some reports say that Musk's contribution will not have that much of an impact at all. Even if the US government would support the move by easing its sanctions, there are still challenges on Iran's side.
Other than a subscription to Starlink, they will have to put up Starlink terminals so users will be able to connect to the Internet. However, Iran's government itself may see the terminals as a security threat and restrict its entry into the country.
One way to make it work would be to smuggle the terminals into Iran, but according to Aljazeera, it will probably cost a couple of million to make that happen. It doesn't bode well that Iranian officials have already blocked Starlink's website.
Not only will it be a hassle, but the activation brought by Starlink has been the cause for spreading malware. Hackers are publishing software while claiming that it was required to connect to Starlink.
In the wake of the potential cyberattacks, Iran can pursue legal actions against the US. An Iranian developer also claimed that a company couldn't offer services in Iran by violating international regulations.
The Root of the Protests
The protests have been raging on for a hundred days, and people outside of Iran might've already forgotten what started it. People, especially women, are still outraged due to the death of Mahsa Amini, a woman who was said to be mistreated by the Iranian morality police.
She was detained for not following the strict dress code, which requires her to keep her hair and limbs covered. She was reportedly beaten, which may have been the reason why she fell into a coma and died after three days.
Fast forward to the present, many protesters have been killed. The number has risen to more than 500 people, which includes 69 children. 26 others are set to face punishment as well.
Pegah Ahangarani, an Iranian actress, stated that Iran can't go back to the time before the death of Mahsa Amini. Iranian football icon Ali Daei even had his jewelry shop and restaurant shut down after revealing his support for the strike, as mentioned by BBC.
