Payande, Imad; Cha kameh, Hadyeh
A icle
F om .com o .go : The in e ne 's ine i able na ionalis
u n
In e ne Policy Re iew
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
Alexande on Humbold Ins i u e o In e ne and Socie y (HIIG), Be lin
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Payande, Imad; Cha kameh, Hadyeh (2025) : F om .com o .go : The in e ne 's
ine i able na ionalis u n, In e ne Policy Re iew, ISSN 2197-6775, Alexande on Humbold
Ins i u e o In e ne and Socie y, Be lin, Vol. 14, Iss. 3, pp. 1-8,
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Volume 14 |
F om .com o .go : The in e ne ’s ine i able
na ionalis u n
Imad Payande Labo a o y o Da a and Go e nance Resea ch (D4G-Lab)
Hadyeh Cha kameh Uni e si y o Roehamp on
DOI: h ps://doi.o g/10.14763/2025.3.2029
Published: 19 Augus 2025
Recei ed: 19 July 2025
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Ci a ion: Payande, I., & Cha kameh, H. (2025). F om .com o .go : The in e ne ’s
ine i able na ionalis u n. In e ne Policy Re iew, 14(3). h ps://doi.o g/10.14763/
2025.3.2029
Keywo ds: In e ne shu down, Digi al so e eign y, Cybe wa , Censo ship, I an
Abs ac : This essay examines I an’s mos ex ensi e in e ne dis up ion since 2022, imposed du ing
he June 2025 con lic wi h Is ael, when missile s ikes quickly e ol ed in o coo dina ed
cybe a acks on banking, ada , and communica ions sys ems. D awing om di ec expe ience
du ing he blackou , i aces how connec i i y collapsed h ough s aged h o ling, p o ocol
supp ession, and ull eliance on he Na ional In o ma ion Ne wo k. Wha began as a echnical
con ainmen s a egy also became an imp o ised shield agains o eign in usion – one shaped as
much by sanc ions-d i en ha dwa e sho ages and eliance on insecu e g ay-ma ke equipmen as
by mili a y calculus.By si ua ing I an’s shu down alongside wa ime digi al es ic ions in places
like Uk aine, he essay e ames shu downs as con es ed ac s o de ense in a secu i ised in e ne . I
explo es how he shi om an open, decen alised ne wo k owa d na ionalised, poli ically
bo de ed in as uc u es is accele a ing unde he p essu es o wa , sanc ions, and p i a e pla o m
powe . Ul ima ely, i a gues ha he “s a e o excep ion” once heo ised by Schmi and Agamben is
becoming he de aul ope a ing mode online, e oding uni e sal digi al igh s. In such momen s,
ideals like in e ne eedom su i e only i con inuously de ended and ein en ed, e en when
su i al demands comp omises un hinkable in peace ime.
Issue 3
I. When wa u ns he in e ne in o a s a e o excep ion
On June 23, as he na ionwide in e ne blackou en e ed i s second week ollowing
he June 13 Is aeli s ikes and subsequen cybe a acks, a iend s udying ab oad
messaged me1in dis ess: she hadn’ hea d om he mo he in I an o days, jus
wo b ie phone calls, each unde ou minu es. He mo he , in he six ies, couldn’
con igu e Teleg am p oxies o na iga e blocked URLs. Tha day, I spen hou s y-
ing o ge a single Google Mee link o he , bu domes ic messaging apps blocked
i , and SMS ailed. Meanwhile, ano he iend was on he phone, dic a ing a
100-cha ac e VPN con igu a ion, le e by le e , o his a he -in-law in a illage in
Zanjan. Bu he damage didn’ s op a s ained communica ion. The blackou
seeped in o e e y laye o socie y, d agging en i e li elihoods in o unce ain y. I
wa ched as mos businesses s alled, hei eams pa alysed wi hou s able access.
S a ups ha once h i ed on in e ne ope a ions wen da k o e nigh . F iends and
colleagues messaged me in us a ion, ying o coo dina e e y basic asks, like
managing se e s o esponding o clien s, none o hem possible.
This scene played ou jus days a e Is ael launched a se ies o s ikes inside I an-
ian e i o y on June 13, 2025. Fou days la e , he ba leg ound had u ned digi al:
On June 17, a se ies o coo dina ed cybe a acks a ge ed I an’s banking sys ems,
ada in as uc u e, and in e nal communica ions. In esponse, he go e nmen o
I an enac ed he mos comp ehensi e in e ne dis up ion since 2022. The mechan-
ics we e amilia : DNS injec ions, na ional ou ing p o ocols, selec i e h o ling,
and ull eliance on he Na ional In o ma ion Ne wo k. In o m, i esembled he
in as uc u al censo ship deployed du ing he 2022 p o es s, when au ho i ies in
I an shi ed om b u e- o ce blackou s o sub le , sys emic con ols. Bu his ime,
i wasn’ he p o es ha igge ed he da kness. I was wa . A calcula ed wa ime
shu down, enginee ed o seal digi al bo de s in he ace o o eign sabo age.
This shi made me con on a undamen al ques ion: How long can we de end he
ideals o in e ne eedom and democ a ic openness in imes o ex eme c isis?
When c i ical in as uc u es a e mili a ised and digi al li elines become a ge s,
s a es, whe he democ a ic o au ho i a ian, ace exc ucia ing choices. Ca l Schmi
once a gued ha he so e eign is he one who decides on he excep ion. Today,
I’ e come o see ha he excep ion is no longe an anomaly; i is he ope a ing
logic o a secu i ised in e ne . As philosophe Gio gio Agamben wa ned, we now
li e unde a “s a e o excep ion” ha has become he dominan pa adigm o ule.
In a wa o exis en ial h ea , he i s casual ies a e ou no mal legal no ms, be-
1. All s a emen s made in he i s pe son singula e e o Imad Payande.
2 In e ne Policy Re iew 14(3) | 2025
cause necessi y knows no law. In his si ua ion, I wi nessed ha he ideal o an
open in e ne is sac i iced in he name o su i al.
II. The g ea shi : F om open commons o na ionalised
ne wo ks
The in e ne , once a bo de less ha en o ee exp ession and global connec ion, is
cu en ly unde going a adical econ igu a ion. Wha began as a Cold Wa expe i-
men in esilien communica ion, has, o e he decades, e ol ed in o he ne ous
sys em o he global economy, in o ma ion lows, and poli ical li e. Ye unde he
p essu e o wa , sanc ions, and he geopoli ics o digi al in as uc u e, I see an ac-
cele a ing shi : om a decen alised, open-ended a chi ec u e (“.com”) o a s a e-
cen e ed, secu i ised, and poli ically bo de ed in as uc u e (“.go ”).
Au ho i a ian s a es a e no he only a chi ec s o his ans o ma ion. While coun-
ies like Russia and I an ha e led e o s o es ablish na ional i ewalls, legal con-
ols, and in as uc u al cen alisa ion, ecen wa s ha e e ealed a a mo e com-
plex and mo ally ambiguous landscape. Fo ins ance, Uk aine has also aken s eps
o limi mobile connec i i y in a eas ulne able o d one ac i i y, a emp ing o
p e en Russian UAVs om exploi ing ci ilian elecom signals. The pa liamen o
Uk aine is conside ing gi ing he mili a y eal- ime shu down powe s in comba
zones. He e, in e ne shu downs a e no ools o ep ession bu ac s o ac ical de-
ense. As one Uk ainian o icial pu i : “Soone o la e , socie y will ha e o decide
wha is mo e impo an : s able in e ne o sa e ci ies.”
This adeo e lec s he eme ging eali y o digi al so e eign y in wa ime, a eal-
i y I ha e come o unde s and mo e deeply as con lic s un old. In such momen s,
in as uc u e becomes dual-use, openness becomes some kind o ulne abili y,
and ci ilian ne wo ks become mili a y a ge s. The e y ea u es ha once made
he in e ne a space o emancipa ion, esilience, decen alisa ion, and mobili y
could now be liabili ies in kine ic con lic . Mobile SIM ca ds, once celeb a ed o
acili a ing access, a e epu posed by enemy d ones. Sa elli es like S a link, c ucial
o Uk aine’s mili a y coo dina ion, also aise c i ical ques ions abou p i a e powe
and g owing public dependence. Wha does i mean when a so e eign na ion mus
ely on a billionai e’s bandwid h o su i e? These a e no me ely he o ical ques-
ions; hey ha e become eal dilemmas o go e nmen s acing he weaponisa ion
o digi al in as uc u e. I ’s p ecisely hese challenges ha , in my iew, a e d i ing
many coun ies, almos ine i ably, owa d emb acing digi al so e eign y bo h as a
concep and a p ac ice.
3 Payande, Cha kameh
III. I an’s blackou : The ana omy o a digi al siege
Acco ding o da a om Cloud la e Rada , I anian in e ne a ic d opped sha ply
be ween June 14 and June 18 (see Figu e 1). This decline occu ed in h ee s ages:
an ini ial wa e o so h o ling and pa ial es ic ions, ollowed by a nea - o al
blackou , and inally a g adual, phased e u n.
On June 13, HTTP/2 and HTTP/3 p o ocols s ill domina ed a ic lows. I indica es
a ela i ely mode n ne wo k aligned wi h global s anda ds. Bu by June 15, while
he olume o HTTP eques s inc eased d ama ically, which sugges s use s we e
u gen ly ying o access in o ma ion, he ac ual da a ans e ed d opped sha ply.
This disc epancy poin s o delibe a e h o ling a he applica ion and anspo
laye s, likely ia Deep Packe Inspec ion (DPI). HTTP/3, he mos secu e and speed-
op imised p o ocol, was apidly supp essed. Based on he i h epo on he quali-
y o he in e ne in I an, published by he Teh an Elec onic Comme ce Associa-
ion, a sou ce close o he go e nmen indica ed ha a o mal decision had been
made o block HTTP/3 and IP 6 na ionwide.
FIGURE 1: In e ne access in I an d opped o 2.8% a e Is ael’s June 13 a ack and s a e-imposed
es ic ions. (Sou ce: CNN Wo ld based on Cloud la e Rada ).
The blackou eached i s peak on June 18. Less han 3% o I anian use s had access
o he global in e ne (see Figu e 2). In such a si ua ion, in e nal se ices such as
banking apps and domes ic pla o ms emained pa ially ope a ional h ough he
Na ional In o ma ion Ne wo k, bu ex e nal connec i i y ceased en i ely. Howe e ,
he e we e a ew excep ions, like o eign diploma ic cen e s, S a link use s, o eli e
o ganisa ions wi h dedica ed in as uc u e.
4 In e ne Policy Re iew 14(3) | 2025
FIGURE 2: Ne Blocks da a illus a es a na ionwide connec i i y collapse in I an beginning June 18,
2025, wi h le els d opping o jus 3% o no mal a ic.
A e all his, he eopening was con olled and g adual, no sudden o immedia e.
On June 19, a ic began o ise again selec i ely. Fixed-line ope a o s in low- isk
a eas we e p io i ised. P o ocols we e olled back o HTTP/1.x, a o ing simplici y
and aceabili y o e speed and secu i y. Cloud la e da a om June 20–21 shows
ha while in e ne a ic began o eco e , i emained a below no mal le els,
which poin s no o a ull shu down, bu o se e e h o ling ha hea ily es ic ed
access (see Figu e 2).
5 Payande, Cha kameh
FIGURE 3: Cloud la e da a shows a sha p d op in o al and HTTP a ic in I an on June 20–21,
2025, wi h usage a below he p e ious week’s le els, e idence o p o ocol-le el h o ling a he
han ull blackou .
The esul was a ac u ed in e ne expe ience, ailo ed o maximise s a e o e -
sigh . Fanap Telecom emained hea ily es ic ed, while I ancell and AsiaTech
showed signs o eco e y only by June 26. Mobinne , by con as , lagged behind,
ope a ing a 30% o p io capaci y.
By July 4 h, a ic le els had la gely eco e ed, bu use s con inued o epo e a -
ic speeds, se e e VPN dis up ions, and pe sis en DNS esolu ion ailu es. The ne -
wo k, hough echnically “online,” emained uns able; i s a chi ec u e s ill el like
i bo e he sca s o Is ael’s cybe a acks. In u h, he in e ne had e u ned, bu no
he one ha use s emembe ed. No he one hey could us .
The shu down was amed as a necessa y mo e o p o ec c i ical sys ems. These
anged om he powe g id and anspo a ion ne wo ks o da a cen e s ulne a-
ble o DDoS and in usion a acks. The blackou wen beyond echnical con ain-
men . I is also in ended o p ese e ope a ional sec ecy by limi ing open-sou ce
in elligence (OSINT) leaks, managing in e nal ins abili y, and con olling he low
o in o ma ion.
Bu om whe e I s and, he challenges un deepe han jus s a egic de ense.
Sweeping sanc ions ha e cu o access o us ed global endo s. As a esul , I an
mus ely on g ay-ma ke equipmen – o en smuggled, second-hand, o unsup-
po ed, iddled wi h al e ed i mwa e and hidden backdoo s – ha is o en ou da -
6 In e ne Policy Re iew 14(3) | 2025
ed and ull o secu i y laws. Ha ing wa ched hese de elopmen s un old, I can’
help bu see how hese s uc u al limi a ions, imposed unde he guise o in e na-
ional p essu e, ha e quie ly chipped away a I an’s digi al de enses. I ’s pain ully
clea o me ha i is h ough hese c acks ha hos ile cybe ac o s, many linked o
Is ael’s co e ne wo ks, ha e launched hei mos damaging in usions. In ying
o build esilience, I an has been pushed owa d isola ion; ye i onically, his e y
isola ion seems o ha e only made i mo e ulne able.
IV. Be ween ep ession and necessi y
The impac s o sanc ions a e o en in isible, and hei ue cos s emain unseen.
They equen ly accele a e a na ionalis u n in in e ne go e nance. In I an and
o he sanc ioned coun ies like Russia, access o upda es, cybe secu i y pa ches,
and o eign digi al se ices has o en been es ic ed. This has led o ha dwa e de-
cay, mig a ion o ech alen , and inc eased ulne abili y o cybe a acks. Ye e en
amid hese p essu es, hese go e nmen s double down on isola ionism and p o-
mo e domes ic messenge s and pla o ms ha o en ail o mee oday’s in e ne
use s’ expec a ions o esilience s anda ds.
Among hese, Russia has aken a pa icula ly o malised app oach. The so-called
“So e eign In e ne Law” manda es ha ISPs ou e all a ic h ough Roskomnad-
zo -con olled nodes. In p ac ice, his enables egion-speci ic shu downs, con en
il a ion, IMEI acking, and he deploymen o na ional DNS and messaging al e -
na i es. Al hough he he o ic is one o secu i y, he p ac ice me ges in o ma ion
wa a e, censo ship, and pe o ma i e so e eign y.
This pu sui o digi al con ol, howe e , comes wi h ecip ocal consequences. In
2024, Russia began o cing in e na ional hos ing companies o ollow s ic local
ules, p omp ing p o ide s like Ge many’s He zne o pull ou o he coun y. Mean-
while, EU sanc ions a e he Uk aine in asion banned Russian s a e media like RT
and Spu nik, equi ing ISPs o block access. In esponse, some Wes e n news si es
ha e also es ic ed Russian use s h ough geo-blocking. The esul is a s eadily
agmen ing in e ne , shaped as much by global e alia ion as by domes ic con ol.
This is no me ely a s o y o ep ession. F om wha I ha e obse ed, i is also one
o despe a ion, imp o isa ion, and su i al. The na ionalis u n is no always a e-
sul o au ho i a ian ambi ion; I belie e i can eme ge om poli ical agili y. The
agedy is no ha he in e ne has bo de s. I always had hem in i s p o ocols, IP
alloca ions, and cen alised naming sys ems. The agedy is ha we mis ook i s
ea ly openness as pe manence, a he han as a empo a y byp oduc o U.S. mili-
7 Payande, Cha kameh
a y libe alism. As missile s ikes mee me ada a, I ind mysel con on ing a ha d
u h: he in e ne was ne e uly bo de less. I only looked ha way un il he
wa s began.
V. Righ s wi hou shel e
In e ne shu downs undeniably es ic eedom, ampli y s a e p opaganda, and i-
ola e human igh s in many ways. Ye , he ha sh eali ies o mode n con lic com-
plica e he mo al cla i y o en assumed in digi al igh s deba es.
Fo coun ies like I an, unde siege bo h om wi hin and wi hou , esis ing cybe -
a acks while na iga ing he consequences o in e na ional sanc ions p esen s a
c uel dilemma. In my expe ience, he uni e sal ideals o in e ne eedom and
openness, o ged in imes o peace, begin o al e in he ace o excep ional
h ea s. Du ing he 12-day wa , e en ocal c i ics o censo ship I spoke o ound
hemsel es g appling wi h uneasy ques ions: Can any socie y a o d o keep i s
digi al windows open when missiles ly and se e s bu n?
In hose days, su i al demanded comp omises unimaginable in peace ime. The
open in e ne was sac i iced no ou o loyal y o s a e con ol bu om despe a-
ion, as banks, public se ices, and daily li e came unde a ack, making he Na-
ional In o ma ion Ne wo k he only agile li eline. Cybe a acks exploi ed back-
doo s, comp omised pa ches, and manipula ed licenses, pushing I an in o wha
Agamben calls a “zone o inde e mina ion,” suspended be ween democ acy and ab-
solu ism. He e, in e ne eedom ceased o be a uni e sal gua an ee, educed o a
condi ional o e ing shaped by powe . When no s a e can o will uphold basic
igh s, he indi idual – s ipped o ba e li e – emains exposed o bo h ex e nal
assaul and in e nal domina ion. Unde siege, e en he mos deeply held ideals
un a el, su i ing only h ough elen less de ense and ein en ion.
8 In e ne Policy Re iew 14(3) | 2025
