"Welcome back Iran! Metrics show a further rise in connectivity as mobile networks and other segments are reconnected to the global internet," the internet observatory Netblocks said in a Tuesday post on X.
"Filternet remains in place but can be worked around. WhatsApp now restricted, requiring circumvention. Some users still offline," it added, as it put the connectivity rate at 86 percent.
The restoration followed a Monday vote by a special cyberspace body created by President Masoud Pezeshkian to return international internet access to its pre-January 2026 status.
However, state media reported Tuesday that an administrative court had temporarily suspended implementation of the order that established the body, raising questions over the legal future of the reopening process.
ICT Minister Sattar Hashemi said the restoration decision was approved by nine votes to two at the body’s first official meeting, while his deputy said the reopening of fixed-line internet had begun nationwide.
On Monday, the IRGC-affiliated Fars News agency first questioned whether the administration had the authority to issue such an order, arguing that because the restrictions were imposed by the Supreme National Security Council, only the same body could formally reverse them.
Hours later, however, Fars appeared to soften its position in an editorial describing the reopening as a necessary “technical and security” decision that would have happened “sooner or later” as cyber conditions improved.
The outlet said the restrictions had originally been imposed to prevent cyber espionage and protect critical infrastructure during wartime conditions and an unprecedented wave of cyberattacks.
While acknowledging criticism over the legal process behind the decision, Fars dismissed efforts to turn the issue into a political dispute and accused some reformist media outlets of exploiting the shutdown to deepen internal divisions during what it described as a “full-scale war.”
The meeting of the Special Task Force on Cyberspace Management ended with nine votes in favor and three against reconnecting Iran to the global internet, according to reports.
Peyman Jebelli, head of Iran’s state broadcaster, and Mohammad-Amin Aghamiri, secretary of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, were among the strongest opponents of restoring international internet access, Faraz reported citing informed sources.
According to Faraz, both men remained firmly opposed to reconnecting the country to the global internet until the end of the meeting.
The report said Aghamiri’s position was particularly notable because the secretary of the Supreme Council of Cyberspace is appointed by the president. Although Aghamiri was first appointed under the previous administration, Pezeshkian later retained him in the post.
Faraz said Aghamiri’s opposition had placed him at odds with the government at a time when Pezeshkian has publicly identified restoring internet access as one of his priorities.
