Could This REALLY Be True?
Simon Whistler · January 28, 2026 · 18 min video · Middle East
Already an Insider? Sign in and it plays here.
Also on YouTube. WarFronts published this video on its YouTube channel on January 28, 2026. Here it is with the sponsor segment cut out. Insiders watch all 878 WarFronts and HomeFronts videos this way.
From the transcript
When the Iranian government cut the internet, that's not a good sign! They pulled this exact move back in 2019 after they killed around 1,500 protesters over two weeks that began in 2022 during the Masha Amini uprising.
Each time, the blackout served the very same purpose, to hide what's happening from the outside world and their own citizens into all the immediate threat from the protests subsided.
So when the internet connectivity cut off across the nation earlier this month, it was pretty clear what was coming, especially given it happened after weeks of the largest sustained protests since the 1979 revolution. But what happened next shocked even the most pessimistic Iran observers.
This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.
No sponsor reads, on every episode
This video is free on YouTube with a sponsor segment. Insiders get the clean cut of every WarFronts and HomeFronts video, plus 128 exclusives that are only on Fronts.
About this briefing
How many died when Iran shut down the internet? We break down leaked reports, verified counts, and why estimates range from thousands to over thirty thousand killed in days crackdown. Megaprojects: https://www.youtube.com/@megaprojects9649 SideProjects: https://www.youtube.com/@Sideprojects Into The Shadows: https://www.youtube.com/@IntotheShadows Today I Found Out: https://www.youtube.com/@TodayIFoundOut Brain Blaze: https://www.youtube.com/@brainblaze6526 Casual Criminalist: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCasualCriminalist Decoding the Unknown: https://www.youtube.com/@decodingtheunknown2373 Places: https://www.youtube.com/@Places302 Celestium: https://www.youtube.com/@Celestium1234 PoliticalFronts: http://www.youtube.com/@homefronts
More like this
Go deeper than the YouTube video
Briefing Room: Attack in Jordan Leads to Airstrikes in Syria, And More.
October 30, 2026 · only on Fronts
Middle East Roundtable: The Times, They Are A-Changin'
November 9, 2026
Middle East Roundtable: Khaos in the Knesset.
November 2, 2026
Turkey and Saudi Arabia Want to Redraw the Middle East by Rail. Here's How
William B. Lipscomb · 12 min read