Large-scale network disruption detected across state broadcasters

A nationwide communications disruption has crippled IRIB television channels and several state-affiliated news agencies across Iran, with internet monitoring services reporting traffic drops of up to 78% from Iranian IP ranges since approximately 01:15 UTC on Wednesday. The disruption pattern — simultaneous outages across geographically distributed infrastructure — is consistent with centralized targeting rather than a technical fault.

NetBlocks, an independent internet monitoring organization, confirmed that connectivity from Iran's primary telecommunications providers including MCI (Mobile Communication Company of Iran), Irancell, and the state-owned Telecommunication Infrastructure Company dropped sharply within a 12-minute window. Doug Madory, head of internet analysis at Kentik, noted on X/Twitter that the traffic pattern "does not resemble typical Iranian internet throttling or shutdowns ordered by authorities," suggesting an external disruption vector.

IRIB's channels 1, 2, 3, and the English-language Press TV went dark simultaneously, with only radio broadcasts on FM frequencies remaining operational. The Fars News Agency, Tasnim News Agency, and the semi-official ISNA were all inaccessible from outside Iran for approximately four hours. Internal Iranian internet (the National Information Network, or SHOMA) appeared to remain partially functional, allowing limited domestic communication but cutting off international connectivity.

Cybersecurity analysts at Recorded Future and CrowdStrike have noted similarities between this disruption and previous operations attributed to state-level cyber actors, though no group has claimed responsibility. The Iranian Ministry of Communications issued a brief statement attributing the outages to "a technical malfunction in undersea fiber optic cables," a claim contradicted by submarine cable operators Omantel and GBI, who reported no anomalies on their systems. The incident comes amid heightened tensions in the region and follows similar, smaller-scale disruptions to Iranian military communications networks reported by OSINT analysts over the past week.