Mahsa Amini’s death while being detained by the ‘morality police’ sparked a series of protests in Iran. The government began blocking Iranians’ internet to cool down the demonstrations. In the midst of all this, SpaceX’s CEO, Elon Musk has promised to activate Starlink, a satellite internet service in the country.
The South African billionaire made the promise last Friday (23), by responding to a Twitter post by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The secretary said the United States would take steps to “promote internet freedom and the free flow of information” to Iranians.
Starlink is activating…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 23, 2022
Despite US sanctions against Iran, the Treasury Department has guided the expansion of internet services available to Iranians. Initially, an official from the agency said that Starlink is understood as a commercial-grade thing and will be hardware not covered by the general license, making it necessary to subscribe to the treasury.
A State Department spokesperson later pointed out that the updated license is self-executing. Anyone who meets the criteria specified in this general license can continue their activities without requesting additional permission.
Elon Musk, this Monday (26), expressed his desire to introduce satellite internet service in Iran. That’s why I’m requesting a sanction exemption. However, he did not disclose about Starlink’s authority to operate in the country.
A State Department spokesperson added that a special license for SpaceX’s broadband would be welcomed and prioritized.
Protests in Iran
Mahsa Amini died on September 16. She was arrested by the morality police because the Islamic headscarf, which is a headscarf, was not considered appropriate. Police said the 22-year-old died of heart failure after two days in a coma. However, there is evidence that Mahsa’s head was beaten with a piece of wood and crashed into a car several times. 41 people have died since the protests began.
Source: Tec Mundo
