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Yusuf Pezeshkian, son of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, has called for the lifting of internet restrictions in Iran, warning that shutdowns will not resolve unrest but instead expand public dissatisfaction.
In a post on Telegram, Pezeshkian said delaying the circulation of images and videos from protests violently suppressed by authorities would solve nothing. “This means that those who were previously satisfied will be added to the list of the dissatisfied,” he wrote.
He said videos showing violence during protests are “something that must be confronted sooner or later,” adding that shutting down the internet only postpones the problem rather than addressing it.
As restrictions are intermittently eased, a clearer picture of casualties has begun to emerge. Human rights groups report that several thousand people have been killed.
The Norway-based group Iran Human Rights said the final death toll could reach as high as 25,000, while thousands remain in detention.
Photos of children who lost their lives have started appearing on Iranian websites. Farabi Eye Hospital Director Dr. Ghasem Fakhraei said more than 1,000 patients have required emergency eye surgery at specialized ophthalmology centers since the protests began, noting that hospital wards are overwhelmed.
Pezeshkian warned that depriving Iran of internet access poses a greater risk than the possibility of protests resuming once connections are restored.
He said security institutions must ensure safety while recognizing that internet access is a basic necessity of modern life.
Pezeshkian said protests turned violent due to groups allegedly linked to foreign actors but acknowledged that security and law enforcement forces may have made mistakes that must be addressed.
Iran’s stock exchange fell for a fourth consecutive day on Sunday, while the national currency, the rial, continued to lose value against the dollar, one of the main triggers of the protests.
Although shops have reopened, even newspapers close to security services have acknowledged weak trade activity.
Iran’s Computer Trade Organization stated that the internet shutdown is resulting in daily losses of $20 million, while truck drivers are facing difficulties crossing borders due to missing electronic documents.
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