Starlink Internet Service Provided Free For Iran
Following a conversation between US President Donald Trump and SpaceX's Elon Musk, the Starlink satellite Internet service has been made free of charge for those in Iran.
In recent days, following the complete Internet blackout in Iran by the authorities in response to mass protests, Starlink has been one of the few ways for Iranians to communicate with the outside world.
Despite the presence of tens of thousands of Starlink terminals and dishes across Iran, users have faced difficulties in methods for paying the subscription fee. There have also been reports of serious disruptions in Starlink signals.
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Goldberg: 'Nothing Is Off The Table' For Trump's Response In Iran
During Trump’s presidency, between 2019 and 2020, when the United States pressure campaign against the Islamic republic was at its peak, Richard Goldberg was director of the White House’s National Security Council’s Office of Countering Iran’s Weapons of Mass Destruction.
Hannah Kaviani of RFE/RL’s Radio Farda spoke with Richard Goldberg, now a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, on January 13 about what Trump’s next move might be against Iran.
Click here to read the interview.
Axios: Witkoff 'Secretly' Met Iran's Prince Reza Pahlavi
Axios reporter Barack Ravid said on January 13 that Steve Witkoff, Donald Trump’s special envoy, "secretly" met with Reza Pahlavi, the former crown prince of Iran who has become an opposition figure.
He quoted an unnamed "senior American official" as saying the focus of the meeting and talks was the widespread protests in Iran.
US officials have not yet officially confirmed the news.
Axios says this is the first high-level meeting between the Iranian opposition and the Trump administration since the protests began in Iran on December 28.
According to the site, Pahlavi is trying to position himself as a "transitional" leader if the regime falls.
Witkoff previously served as Trump's representative in nuclear negotiations with representatives of the Islamic republic.
Meanwhile, Canada is now advising any of its citizens in Iran to leave the country.
The NetBlocks digital rights watchdog now says that Iran's Internet blackout has passed the 120-hour mark.
'Thousands Of Bodies': Death Toll Soars Amid Iran's Brutal Crackdown
At least 2,000 people have been killed in the protests in Iran, according to a US-based human rights group, HRANA, amid the deadly crackdown on anti-government demonstrations. One Iranian exile in Germany told RFE/RL she heard from a trusted source able to get past Iran's communication blackout that her uncle had been killed and that the number of deaths could be much higher.
Will The EU Add The IRGC To Its Terror List Now?
For years the European Union has failed to achieve unanimity from its 27 member states to put Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) on its terrorist list. Tehran's deadly crackdown on anti-government protesters over the past two weeks, however, may have finally changed that.
The bloc is now weighing more asset freezes and visa bans against individuals responsible for the crackdown on Iranian protesters, and the measures could potentially be ready by the time the bloc's foreign ministers meet in Brussels on January 29.
No sectoral sanctions are expected, but there has been talk that the decision to add the IRGC to the terrorist list -- meaning certain IRGC officials could be arrested if they set foot in an EU member state -- would be largely symbolic.
To read the rest of the analysis by RFE/RL Europe Editor Rikard Jozwiak, click here.
Iran Port Closures, Internet Blackout Also Hurting Afghan Traders
Afghan traders who regularly import goods from neighboring Iran say the current wave of protests has severely affected business. Iran, which is one of Afghanistan's largest trading partners, has seen closures at ports as infrastructure nationwide has been paralyzed by the mass demonstrations and the government's violent crackdown.
Traders who spoke with RFE/RL's Radio Azadi on January 12 said that each passing day represents more financial losses as their goods remain stuck in Iran.
Naqibullah Qalandari, who imports tires, mobile phones, and raw materials for factories from Iran, says "hundreds of containers" of his firm's goods are currently in limbo at multiple Iranian ports.
"Due to the protests in Iran, our loads of tires and mobile phones are stuck in Bandar Abbas. Hundreds of containers of these raw materials are stuck at Imam Khomeini port. Undoubtedly, the losses are high, because the goods are sitting there and incurring fines. About 200 of our containers are stuck and we are extremely worried."
Haji Abdul Ghafoor, an Afghan trader who exports Afghan apples and pomegranates to India via Iran, voiced a similar complaint.
"This may be a domestic issue for Iran, but it has also caused us problems. My 13 commercial vehicles are stuck, and each vehicle costs $20,000. There are many other traders like me whose goods are stuck, and if these fruit spoil, we will suffer considerable financial losses. Our trucks loaded with goods have been stopped by Iran, and therefore we have to pay for cold storage, transportation, and parking of the vehicles."
As part of its crackdown on the protests, the Iran government has restricted telephone lines and enforced a nationwide Internet blackout, which also negatively affects Afghan traders.
Haji Bashir, who imports fresh vegetables from Iran, told Radio Azadi he has received no information about his shipment of goods for several days due to telephone and Internet outages.
Officials from the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment did not respond to Radio Azadi's inquiries on the matter.
US President Donald Trump has issued another post on social media expressing support for protesters in Iran, saying that "help is on its way."
