Naftali Bennett, who served as Israel’s prime minister from 2021 to 2022, acknowledged publicly that he initiated efforts to bring Starlink satellite internet receivers into Iran in order to sustain internet and social media connectivity for anti-government demonstrators.
Speaking at the JNS International Policy Summit in Jerusalem, Bennett said he had started a "process of acquiring and smuggling into Iran tens of thousands of Starlink receptors that would allow continuity of the internet and social networks." He described the intention behind the scheme as enabling protesters to coordinate and to ultimately topple Iran’s government.
Starlink, the satellite internet service operated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, is not licensed to operate in Iran. The former prime minister said the devices were meant to preserve communications during internet disruptions, but he added that the current Israeli government did not carry the plan through. "Unfortunately, the current incompetent Israeli government stopped doing that," Bennett said. "And when the protest happened, that infrastructure was not there."
Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond to questions about Bennett’s remarks. SpaceX was not available for comment outside U.S. business hours, according to the account of events.
The announcement comes against a background in which Iranian authorities have at times cut public access to the internet during episodes of unrest. The article notes that such shutdowns included periods of deadly nationwide protests in January and also during the U.S. and Israeli war with Iran that began at the end of February. Previously reported accounts indicate that some Iranians turned to Starlink during internet blackouts.
Bennett, who leads a right-wing party and is one of several opposition politicians seeking to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an election due by October, framed his approach to Tehran as aimed at undermining and toppling Iran’s government if he were to return to office. He said measures he would consider could include steps short of direct military strikes, specifying economic and industrial sabotage as possible options.
Summary
At a policy summit in Jerusalem, Naftali Bennett said he had initiated a clandestine effort to import tens of thousands of Starlink receivers into Iran to maintain internet connectivity for protesters, but asserted that the current Israeli government halted the operation before it could be used. Requests for comment to Netanyahu’s office and SpaceX were not answered in the immediate aftermath of Bennett’s remarks. The account reiterates that Iranian authorities have intermittently blocked public internet access during unrest and that some Iranians have relied on Starlink during blackouts.
Key points
- Naftali Bennett said he began a program to acquire and smuggle tens of thousands of Starlink receivers into Iran to sustain internet and social networks for protesters.
- Bennett asserted the devices were meant to help protesters coordinate and ultimately topple Iran’s government, but said the current Israeli government stopped the initiative before it was operational.
- The article records that Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond to queries and that SpaceX was not available for comment outside U.S. business hours; it also notes prior reporting that some Iranians used Starlink during internet blackouts.
Risks and uncertainties
- Uncertainty over implementation - Bennett said the smuggling effort was initiated but that the current government stopped carrying it out, leaving unresolved whether the plan reached operational scale.
- Limited confirmation - Official responses were not immediately available from Netanyahu’s office and SpaceX was not reachable for comment outside U.S. business hours, creating a gap in external verification of Bennett’s account.
- Operational risk from internet shutdowns - Iranian authorities have at times cut public internet access during unrest, which is a central challenge the described effort aimed to address.
Context noted in the remarks
The article records Bennett’s political positioning: he leads a right-wing party, is a contender to replace the current prime minister in an election due by October, and has said that, if returned to office, he would pursue actions to undermine Iran’s government that could include nonmilitary measures such as economic and industrial sabotage.