The government of Belarus shut down access to much of the internet during a crucial election this month by using equipment manufactured by a U.S. company to block people's access to thousands of websites, according to two people familiar with the matter.

"If you know that the technology you are providing to a non-sanctioned person will be used for a sanctioned person's benefit, then that transaction is prohibited," Nweke said. Sandvine declined to comment about potential sanctions violations.

The murky details of how the Belarusian Internet went down around a time of great social upheaval in Belarus with suspicions of the government being behind it and how the population used technology to get around the shutdown. "Protesters quickly find digital workarounds to document demonstrations, police violence... “That’s an unintended consequence of the shutdown – suddenly a lot of people here in Belarus now understand digital rights and why access to the internet is so essential,” said Kozliuk, of Human Constanta.  “More people know how to get past the blocking. And we have lots of good arguments for Belarusian people to support internet freedoms.”"

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