Iranians are crossing into Turkey’s eastern Van province in short trips to get around largely blocked internet service in Iran, a report by Associated Press said.
The report said a border crossing with Iran in Van had not seen a major influx of Iranians seeking asylum from unrest in their country. Instead, many were making quick jaunts across the border, where internet access is not disrupted in the same way, to navigate communications blackouts.
Internet service has largely been blocked in Iran since Jan. 8, AP reported, during mass protests that began Dec. 28 over Iran’s ailing economy and a violent government crackdown that followed. The report said protests had largely subsided and an uneasy calm had settled in much of Iran, but communications blackouts continued to create difficulties, particularly for people who rely on internet access for work.
AP reported that on Saturday, witnesses said text messaging and very limited internet services began functioning again briefly in parts of Iran. With the blackout disrupting connectivity intermittently and unevenly, some residents and travelers near the border described using Turkey trips as a workaround.
According to AP, Iranians enter Turkey without visas, allowing some people—especially those living farther north in Iran or with the means to travel—to cross briefly and then return. Some travelers said they funded the trips by selling goods such as cigarettes and tea in Iran, which they said sell for higher prices in Turkey.
Sami Ranjbar, who AP reported was crossing from Turkey back into Iran on Friday after staying in Van for four days, said his job depends on internet access. “My work depends on the internet, so I am forced to come here to access it and do my work, and then return to Iran to see how conditions develop,” he said. He added, “If the internet is restored, we will stay, if not, we will be forced to come out again to use the internet, and go to neighboring countries or elsewhere.”
Another traveler, Ali, spoke to AP on condition of not being identified by his full name out of security concerns. AP reported that Ali was headed back to Tehran on Saturday after staying in Turkey for four days and that he came with his brother, whose university application process required internet access.
AP also reported that Ali said many friends in Iran had been arrested and that some had been killed. Ali said he had complicated feelings about events in his country and described being caught between support for neither the current authorities nor the alternatives, while also saying he was concerned about the danger of war from Israel and other countries. “We are under a dictatorship, but we are also in danger of war from Israel and other countries,” he said, adding, “I’m not OK with being attacked by other countries, but I’m not OK at all with my government.”
The report said the crackdown that began Dec. 28 has left at least 3,095 people dead, citing the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. Despite the toll, AP said residents near the border crossing in northeastern Iran described life returning largely to business as usual and described little unrest in the area.
AP reported that the region is conservative and has a large ethnic Turk and Azeri population. The report said many Iranian travelers from the north viewed the protests in Tehran and other areas as having little to do with them, and some echoed Iranian government allegations that the unrest was seeded by the U.S. and Israel.
AP said Milad Soleimani, 28, came from the Iranian town of Qatur, about 8 kilometers (5 miles) from the border gate, for a day’s shopping and spoke in Turkish about the cause of economic hardship. AP said Soleimani told AP that financial struggle was tied to “things America and Israel are doing,” and he said the majority supported the state.
AP also reported that Iranian Turks and Azeris were largely averse to exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, who has hoped to stage a return and urged protesters into the streets. The report said ethnic minorities were repressed under Reza Pahlavi’s father, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, who was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution that ushered in the current Islamic Republic. AP said many Iranians from the north preferred stability under the current regime over unrest and ambiguity.
Afshin, 24, told AP he thought stability was preferable, saying, “Iran is stable, that’s what is good about it.” He also said, “If there is a civil war, the country will split into 80 pieces,” speaking while giving only his first name out of security concerns.