https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/iran-shuts-down-internet-as-protests-grip-islamic-republic/ar-AA1TPjSe?ocid=msedgntp&pc=HCTS&cvid=696007d5f5e44e75b30b3dbdc557b324&ei=6Iran has shut down the internet across the entire country as anti-regime protests rage across the Islamic Republic. In a desperate move by authorities, an internet blackout was recorded first in the capital Tehran, and then across the rest of the country on Thursday night. There are fears that the lack of service could provide the authorities cover to use lethal force to put down demonstrations. This internet shutdown echoes a government move on protesters in 2019, when 1,500 people were killed. The latest demonstrations against Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and the dire economic situation in Iran, have spread to 111 cities and dozens of towns across all of Iran’s 31 provinces. At least 45 protesters, including eight children, and four security officers have been killed, with 2,200 demonstrators arrested so far. A statue of Qassem Soleimani, who led the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force before he was assassinated by the US in 2020, was pulled down.