Starlink has become central to geopolitical flashpoints around the world, allowing citizens to bypass government-imposed internet blackouts.
The satellite broadband network allowed information about Iran’s protests to leak out, and owner Elon Musk has made it free for users there. He has done the same in Venezuela, where US attacks and a government crackdown have limited traditional internet access.
Myanmar’s anti-government rebels — and a burgeoning industry of online scam centers — rely on Starlink to circumvent internet blocks. In Sudan, locals “don’t have the luxury” of hating Musk, a Sudanese journalist wrote for New Lines Magazine: Though Musk-led cuts to aid from Washington have hammered the country, its citizens rely on Starlink to communicate with the outside world.