Intelsat hasn’t restored service to Islamic Republic of...
Intelsat hasn’t restored service to Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) after meeting this week with IRIB, the State Department and International Telecommunications Satellite Organization, ITSO said. Intelsat stopped transmitting broadcasts for IRIB this month to comply with the National…
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Defense Authorization Act of 2013, which imposes sanctions on IRIB (CD July 2 p12). Intelsat, IRIB and the State Department agreed to exchange further correspondence over the coming weeks, “but at this point in time there hasn’t been a decision regarding restoration of service,” said Patrick Masambu, ITSO deputy managing general. The meeting was an initial discussion, “in the context of the ITSO agreement, concerning the expiration of Intelsat’s license to broadcast for IRIB as a result of placement of IRIB on the U.S. Treasury Department’s specially designated nationals list,” said a State Department official. Iran and the U.S. are parties to the ITSO Agreement, which ensures that satellite communications are available on a global and non-discriminatory basis, the official said. The sanction isn’t focused on the Iranian broadcast sector generally, the official said: The non-renewal of Intelsat’s license for IRIB “holds accountable a specific Iranian entity used by the regime as an instrument of repression and intimidation.”