Russian government ordered Moscow internet blackout

"As internet access in Moscow reportedly begins to stabilize following a three-week disruption, independent Russian media outlet The Bell reported on March 24, citing sources in the local IT sector, that the directive to impose the blackout originated from the Russian government.
According to The Bell's sources, the Scientific and Technical Service Department of the

Russian Security Service (FSB) received orders "from above" to shutdown the internet in response to unspecified security threats.
The source informed The Bell that the FSB gave internet providers a map marking the areas in Moscow where the internet should be turned off but also "hinted in every possible way" that it was not their decision.
Russian authorities introduced in early March a "whitelist" system that allowed access only to selected websites during ongoing mobile internet outages. The accessible websites included pro-government social media, outlets, and official state websites.
They initially claimed that the internet shutdown in Moscow was to test the new system but some officials are saying it was related to unspecified security threats, according to The Bell. Internet outages have since been reported in St. Petersburg.
The nearly month-lonth issue with internet was the first time since the start of the full-scale war against Ukraine that the Russian capital was impacted." KI