Posted on 01/05/2010 4:17:01 AM PST by TigerLikesRooster
Iran bans contact with 60 groups
Ban includes BBC, Human Rights Watch and Israel Radio. Veteran Persian-language broadcaster in Israel says this is not the first time Iran points the finger at media
AFP
Iran has banned its citizens from having contact with 60 organizations including the BBC, Human Rights Watch and opposition website Rahesabz as well as US-funded broadcasters, state media have reported.
The deputy intelligence minister in charge of external affairs said that the 60 blacklisted groups were suspected of being involved in efforts by Western governments to topple the Islamic regime as part of a "soft war" and that it was an offence to communicate with them.
"Any kind of contact by individuals or legal entities with those groups involved in the soft war is illegal and prohibited," state media quoted the deputy minister as saying on Monday without giving his name.
The blacklisted organizations also included US government-funded Voice of America and Radio Farda as well as US-based pro-monarchist satellite channels, Israel Radio and the outlawed rebel People's Mujahideen.
Veteran Persian-language Israel Radio broadcaster Menashe Amir commented on the ban in a talk with Ynet and said, "We have been broadcasting for nearly 20 years, and this is not the first time Iran's leaders accuse us of encouraging the Iranian people to conduct a fight for its rights.
(Excerpt) Read more at ynetnews.com ...
Ping!
It would be interesting to see the complete list and the text of the law.
Some in the list:
Iran bans contact with groups involved in soft war
BBC
VOA
The Soros Foundation
the National Endowment for Democracy (NED)
the National Democratic Institute (NDI)
the East European Democratic Centre (EEDC)
Wilton Park
the Smith Richardson Foundation
the United States’ National Defense University
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=115366
Why would this be banned?`http://www.wiltonpark.org.uk/documents/conferences/WP997/pdfs/WP997prog.pdf
Bogus - IRI's conservatives (hardliners) & reformists are feeding propaganda.
bump
*ping*
Thanks hp.
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