Iran’s internet ban draws flak

Washington, Nov. 22: President Donald Trump says Iran is so “unstable” that the Iranian government has shut down the internet so Iranians cannot disclose what he says is the “tremendous violence” occurring in the country. Trump tweeted that the Iranian government wants “ZERO transparency” and believes that by shutting down the internet the rest of the world will not find out about the “death and tragedy that the Iranian Regime is causing!” Recent violence was triggered by Iran’s raising the minimum price for gasoline by 50%. The internet has been blocked since Saturday. Iran isn’t saying how many people have been killed, injured or arrested in the unrest. Amnesty International estimates at least 106 people have been killed with the actual death toll much higher. Meanwhile, Iranian authorities slowly eased up their sweeping blockage of internet access on Friday, as US secretary of state Mike Pompeo called for Iranians to send the US videos “documenting the regime’s crackdown” on protesters. “The US will expose and sanction the abuses,” Pompeo tweeted early Friday, as pockets of Iran saw internet over landlines restored. Authorities have said the internet may be entirely restored soon, suggesting Iran’s government put down the

Iran has become so unstable that the regime has shut down internet system so that the Great Iranian people cannot talk about the tremendous violence taking place within the country. DONALD TRUMP,

US President

demonstrations that began Nov. 15 over govern

The jump in gasoline prices represents yet another burden on Iranians who have suffered through a painful currency collapse. That’s a result of the reimposition of crippling US economic sanctions as part of President Donald Trump’s maximum pressure campaign against Tehran, following his unilateral withdrawal of the US from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

Iran’s relatively moderate President Hassan Rouhani has promised the fuel price increase will fund new subsidies for poor families. Rouhani declared victory Wednesday in the unrest, blaming “the Zionists and Americans” for the violence.

Iran’s Supreme Cyberspace Council secretary Abolhassan Firoozabadi, said he believed the internet would be turned on “within the next two days.”