Iran’s Minister of Intelligence Esmaeil Khatib said the government of the United Kingdom will be held responsible for hosting Persian-language channels he accused of encouraging protests in Iran.
According to Khatib, the “biggest influence on the country for unrest and riots” is coming from the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel and Saudi Arabia. The UK hosts both Manoto and Iran International news channels, in addition to the BBC Persian-language service, which Iranians access through satellite. “The UK will pay the costs for its actions creating unrest in Iran," Khatib said.
Khatib added that Iran International has been labeled a terrorist organization according to the country’s intelligence services. He continued, “Agents of the network will be pursued by the Intelligence Ministry, and any relationship with this terrorist organization will be considered terrorist activity and a threat to national security.”
Iran now is nearly two months into protests that began after the country’s morality police apprehended a young woman who later died in custody. Over 300 people have died in the protests across the country, according to international observers, and dozens of journalists and activists have been arrested. Foreign-based, Persian-language networks have played a large part in covering the protests and are sympathetic to them.
AL-MONITOR All-Access gives you unlimited access to all our journalism, the full Daily Briefing, exclusive interviews, premium newsletters, and live events — for less than $2/week.
