Due to life obligations that require internet access, Iranians cross into Turkey, via the Kapikoy border crossing at the entrance to the eastern Turkish province of Van.
Iranian authorities blocked internet access in the country on January 8th, in response to mass protests across Iran, except for brief access in some parts of Iran today.
Iranians enter Turkey without visas, so for those living in the north of the country, or having the means to travel from more remote areas, short trips across the border have been a workaround.
Some told the Associated Press (AP) that they financed the trip by selling goods like cigarettes and tea, which are cheap in Iran but fetch a higher price in Turkey.
Sami Ranjbar from Tehran, who was returning from Turkey to Iran on Friday, said he was involved in online sales and had stayed in Van for four days to complete the job.
"My work depends on the internet, so I am forced to come here to access it and do my work, and then return to Iran to see how conditions change. If the internet comes back, we will stay, if not, we will be forced to leave Iran again to use the internet and go to neighboring countries or somewhere else," Ranjbar said.
Ali, who did not give his full name for security reasons, returned to Tehran today after spending four days in Turkey.
He said he came with his brother, who needed the internet for university applications.
"Many of our friends have been arrested in Iran, and some of them have been killed. But we have to go back, because we have family and jobs there," Ali said.
At least 3.095 people have died in the repression of protesters, including more than 2.800 protesters, according to the independent human rights network HRANA, based in the US.
Residents of the area of northeastern Iran near the border crossing are conservative, with large populations of ethnic Turks and Azeris.
Many Iranian travelers from the north said the protests in Tehran and other areas had little to do with them, and some echoed the Iranian government's claims that the unrest was instigated by the US and Israel.
"It's true that people are having financial problems. But that's because of the things America and Israel are doing," Milad Soleimani, who had traveled to Turkey from the Iranian city of Katur, eight kilometers from the border gate, to shop, told the AP.
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