Bennett says Israel smuggled Starlink internet receivers into Iran to aid protesters

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett acknowledges that Israel smuggled Starlink internet receivers into Iran to help anti-government protesters, though he said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government failed to follow through on the plans.

Bennett, who served as prime minister from 2021 to 2022, tells the audience at the JNS International Policy Summit in Jerusalem that he had initiated a “process of acquiring and smuggling into Iran tens of thousands of Starlink receptors that would allow continuity of the internet and social networks.”

Starlink, owned by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, provides satellite internet connections. Iran has previously accused Israel and the United States of smuggling in the devices to undermine its security. Starlink is not licensed to operate in Iran but Musk has previously said the service is active there.

Bennett says the devices were intended to enable protesters to coordinate and ultimately topple the Iranian government.

“Unfortunately, the current incompetent Israeli government stopped doing that,” he says. “And when the protest happened, that infrastructure was not there.”

Netanyahu’s office did not immediately respond to questions on Bennett’s remarks and SpaceX was not available for comment.

Bennett told The Times of Israel this month that one thing “I had pushed for that, unfortunately, the next government did not do, was to smuggle into Iran tens of thousands of Starlink receivers, so the next time there’s a local uprising, the regime can’t turn off the internet. This wasn’t done.”