The nationwide shutdown of the internet by authorities in Iran, which activists fear is aimed at masking the true scale of a crackdown on protests, has lasted more than two weeks, a monitor said Thursday.

“Iran has now been under a national internet blackout for two full weeks,” said Netblocks in a post on X.

In recent days there have been reports of more users being able to gain access to the internet on occasional moments, but the monitor indicated this was sporadic and limited to government-approved sites and traffic.

“At hour 336, connectivity levels continue to flatline with only a slight rise at the backbone supplying regime-whitelisted networks,” it said.

“A few users are now able to tunnel to the outside world,” it added, without specifying the tools used for this.

Giving their first official toll from the protests, Iranian authorities on Wednesday said 3,117 people were killed during the wave of demonstrations.

The statement from Iran’s foundation for martyrs and veterans sought to draw a distinction between “martyrs”, who it said were members of security forces or innocent bystanders, and what it described as “rioters” backed by the US.

Of its toll of 3,117, it said 2,427 people were “martyrs”.

However, rights groups say the heavy toll was caused by security forces firing directly on protesters and that the actual number of those killed could be far higher and even extend to over 20,000.

Rights groups have complained that the internet shutdown has deliberately impeded their work and masked the scale of the crackdown.

The shutdown began on the evening of January 8 when mass protests erupted in several major cities, openly challenging the clerical authorities.

AFP