National shutdown
Internet Services
Iraq has again experienced an exam-related Internet shutdown, the sixth such scheduled shutdown by the government since 1 June 2023. As we have repeatedly written about here on Pulse, Internet shutdowns cause great harm to a country’s economy and society and are in our opinion NOT the appropriate mechanism to cope with potential exam cheating.
- Total Duration 4 hours
Iraq
- Population
- 47,020,774
Freedom House rates Internet freedom as Partly Free
Local impact
Iraq has again experienced an exam-related Internet shutdown, the sixth such scheduled shutdown by the government since 1 June 2023. As we have repeatedly written about here on Pulse, Internet shutdowns cause great harm to a country’s economy and society and are in our opinion NOT the appropriate mechanism to cope with potential exam cheating.
Related documentation
Local news programs indicated that the Iraq Ministry of Education announced the shutdown.
Below is a screenshot of the Iraq Primary School exam schedule happening in June 2023 as per the Iraqi Ministry of Education page on Facebook.
Other supporting information
Cloudflare Radar measurements show the shutdown beginning around 01:00 UTC and resuming around 05:00 UTC on Tuesday, 13 June 2023.
IODA measurements show the similar drop.
Google's Transparency Report also shows the near-total drop in web searches from Iraq.
