How Iranians are evading internet blocks to contact family abroad

BBC News - WorldEN 4 min read 100% complete March 15, 2026 at 07:09 PM

AI Summary

long article 4 min

During the war with the US and Israel, Iranians are finding ways to circumvent government-imposed internet and phone restrictions to contact family abroad. One method involves a man on the Iran-Turkey border who uses two phones to connect Iranians outside the country with loved ones inside, bypassing international call blocks. Others are using VPNs to bypass internet restrictions, but these services are expensive and offer unstable connections. While costly, these methods are seen as essential for maintaining contact with family during the conflict. The cost of VPNs has skyrocketed to around £15 ($20) for a gigabyte of data.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Faren Taghizadeh 30% Canada 30% Tehran ×240% Israel 50% United States 50% BBC Persian ×260% Turkey ×270% Iran ×790%

Keywords

iran 90% internet censorship 90% communication restrictions 80% vpn 70% international calls 60% mobile networks 50% wartime 50% circumventing blocks 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Negative

Score: -0.30

Source Transparency

Source

BBC News - World

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

Iran

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis.

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iran internet censorship communication restrictions vpn international calls mobile networks wartime circumventing blocks

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