Iran: Ahmadinejad Defiant as Protests Rage; Election Broadcasts Reportedly Disrupted

The latest developments from Iran.

June 14, 2009 |

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BBC Says Election Broadcasts Disrupted from Iran

LONDON (AFP) – The BBC said Sunday that the satellites it uses to broadcast in Persian were being jammed from Iran, disrupting its reports on the hotly-disputed presidential election.

The corporation said television and radio services had been affected from 1245 GMT Friday onwards by "heavy electronic jamming" which had become "progressively worse".

Satellite technicians had traced the interference to Iran, it said.

The satellites its uses in the Middle East to broadcast BBC Persian television to Iran were being affected, meaning that audiences in Iran, the Middle East and Europe would likely experience disruption.

BBC Arabic television and other language services had also experienced transmission problems, the corporation said.

"Any attempt to block BBC Persian television is wrong and against international treaties on satellite communication. Whoever is attempting the blocking should stop it now," said BBC World Service director Peter Horrocks.

"It seems to be part of a pattern of behaviour by the Iranian authorities to limit the reporting of the aftermath of the disputed election.

"In Tehran, (BBC world affairs editor) John Simpson and his cameraman were briefly arrested after they had filmed material for a piece," he added.

Iranian authorities on Sunday shut down the office of Arab news channel Al-Arabiya in Tehran for a week in the wake of the disputed election win by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the channel said.

BBC Persian, launched in 1940, is one of the corporation's oldest non-English language services.

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Ahmadinejad Defiant as Defeated Rival Protests Vote

by Siavosh Ghazi Siavosh Ghazi – 30 mins ago

TEHRAN (AFP) – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad defended his re-election at a mass victory rally on Sunday but his defeated rival demanded the result be scrapped, setting the stage for further confrontations after a crackdown on opposition protests.

Violence erupted for the second day in Tehran as supporters of Amadinejad's closest challenger Mir Hossein Mousavi clashed with riot police after an election that has set off deep divisions in the oil-rich republic.

Addressing a sea of thousands of flag-waving supporters packed into central Tehran, the hardline Ahmadinejad denied the result of Friday's vote that have given him another four years in power was "distorted."

"Elections in Iran are the cleanest," he said. "Today, we should appreciate the great triumph of the people of Iran against the unified front of all the world arrogance (the West) and the psychological war launched by the enemy."

But after a massive opposition backlash, Western nations have raised concerns about the legitimacy of the vote and the subsequent crackdown on dissidents and protesters.

The moderate Mousavi said he has lodged an appeal with the powerful Guardians Council to cancel the results of the election, which he has charged was a "charade" and marred by blatant fraud.

Another defeated candidate, Mohsen Rezai, also complained to the Guardians Council, said its spokesman, Abbas Ali Kadkhodai, quoted by ISNA news agency. "We will announce the result after examination" of the complaints, he said.

US Vice President Joe Biden said there was "an awful lot of doubt" about the vote, while European nations voiced concern at what Germany called "unacceptable" action by security forces against protesters.

Hundreds of flag-waving demonstrators gathered outside Iranian embassies in Europe to denounce Ahmadinejad's re-election, notably in London, Berlin and Brussels.

Police said they rounded up 170 people over Saturday's protests in Iran, which triggered violence on a scale not seen since 1999 when student demonstrations led to a week of deadly nationwide unrest.

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