Reuters/CCTV. The Iranian people were still left without access to the global internet on Wednesday although most of the domestic internet been available.
The Iranian government has stepped up its efforts to gradually provide internet services to the offices of some institutions and companies involved in international business, but personal mobile phones and home networks of the Iranian people, as well as Internet services in foreign media offices, have not been restored yet.
Iran's state television IRIB reported on Wednesday that 3,117 people had been killed in recent protests, citing the country's Forensic Medical Organization.
Protests have erupted across the country since late December over the sharp depreciation of the rial and surging inflation. Authorities have acknowledged the demonstrations and said they are prepared to address economic grievances, while warning against violence, vandalism, and unrest.
Initially held peacefully, the protests gradually became violent, leading to casualties and damage to public property, mosques, government buildings, and banks, especially on Jan 8 and 9, for which Iranian authorities have blamed the United States and Israel.
The unrest has now subsided currently, and the country's military and intelligence agencies are working to arrest terrorist groups.
In terms of the internet blackout, The Iranian media said in a comment that the prolonged outage would lead to a complete paralysis of Iran's digital economy.
Citing data provided by an online goods sales company, the comment said that the company's sales have dropped by 80 percent to 90 percent.
Such pressure affects many companies, and a vicious cycle is likely to gradually emerge in the coming months, the comment warned.
