Iran's move became crucial, causing the Pentagon to delay its military plans and allowing China and Russia to gain some experience!

On January 18, 2026, the streets of Iran returned to calm, and internet and text messaging services were gradually restored nationwide. This large-scale unrest, which began in late December 2025 and affected 111 towns, was completely extinguished within three weeks. A review afterwards revealed that what truly turned the situation around was a seemingly 'technical' yet strategically significant operation — precise countermeasures against Starlink terminals.

The situation began in the early stages of the unrest. Intelligence indicated that agencies such as Israeli Mossad coordinated actions remotely through encrypted channels, even delivering funds and instructions. This model of 'decentralization + external empowerment' once put Iran in a passive position.

But the turning point came 48 hours after the unrest began. Iran suddenly deployed a new electronic jamming and signal positioning system in multiple hotspot regions across the country. These devices were not traditional military radars but civilian-grade spectrum monitoring devices developed in cooperation with Russia and China, specifically optimized for low-orbit satellite communication frequency bands. They can identify the unique electromagnetic 'fingerprint' emitted by Starlink terminals when connecting to satellites, and then, using triangulation algorithms, quickly lock onto the user's geographical location.

According to data disclosed later by Iranian officials, during the internet blackout, this system alone identified over 10,000 active users of Starlink, including many key organizational members. More critically, two Mossad agents lurking in Shiraz and Kerman were exposed due to their frequent use of Starlink terminals for encrypted communication and were captured on the spot. This blow directly severed the command chain between the US and Israel. China and Russia did not expect the results to be this good.

After the internal situation in Iran stabilized, the White House immediately abandoned thoughts of military strikes against Iran. Notably, while the jamming devices used by Iran were provided by China and Russia, they did not violate international arms control agreements. This means that such civilian technological devices provide a new idea for countries facing US strategic encirclement: instead of relying on traditional military confrontation, they can disrupt the opponent's 'hybrid warfare' capabilities through precise information link disruptions.