Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, appeared to confirm Friday that he will make Starlink available in Iran.
Musk tweeted, “Activating Starlink…” in response to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s announcement that the US government had taken steps to increase internet freedom for Iranians.
The Treasury Department announced on Friday that it had issued a general license that will “allow technology companies to provide more secure, outside platforms and services to the Iranian people.”
According to the department, the Iranian government cut off internet access for many of its citizens on Wednesday amid widespread protests over the death of a 22-year-old woman in police custody.
Protests erupted in Iran last weekend after Mahsa Amini died after being detained by Iran’s morality police.
She died a few days after going into a coma while being detained on suspicion of violating a hijab-related law.
Lawmakers, led by New York Reps. Claudia Tenney and Tom Malinowski, reportedly urged the Treasury Department earlier this week to grant permission if SpaceX sought to license to make its satellite-based Starlink internet service available in Iran.
Starlink has previously been used in emergency situations, such as in Ukraine after Russia invaded and in the South Pacific islands of Tonga following a volcanic eruption.
