Spokesman Blasts US Seizure of Iranian Websites
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry denounced the US government’s move to seize a number of Iranian domains on the Internet as part of Washington’s systematic efforts to impair freedom of speech.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh slammed the seizure of domains of the Iranian media outlets that are subsidiaries of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting as an example of the US’ systematic attempts to impair the freedom of speech at the global level and silence the independent media voices.
It is shameful for Washington to continue with such double standards, the spokesman said, adding, “The current US administration is exactly following the previous US administration’s path, which will result in nothing but a double failure for Washington.”
Iran rejects the US’ illegal and bullying-style move to seize the domains and will pursue the case via legal mechanisms, Khatibzadeh stated.
A similar message appeared on the websites of a series of Iranian and regional television networks on Tuesday that claims their domains have been “seized by the United States Government.”
The notice, which appeared late Tuesday on the website of English-language television news network Press TV as well as a number of other Iranian and regional news channels, cited US sanctions laws for the seizure and was accompanied by the seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the US Department of Commerce.
The websites of Iran's Arabic-language Al Alam television news network, Yemen’s al-Masirah TV channel and Bahrain's Lualua television network were also among the targeted outlets.