SPACE WIRE
Iranian militia seize 2,000 satellite dishes
TEHRAN (AFP) Sep 20, 2003
Iran's volunteer Bassij militia have seized 2,000 satellite dishes in a workshop near Tehran, the conservative Jomhuri Eslami newspaper reported Saturday.

One man was arrested but his accomplices escaped, the Bassij said in a statement, quoted by the paper which gave no further details.

Satellite dishes are banned in the Islamic republic, punishable by fines and jail terms.

Iran's hardline camp denounces foreign satellite broadcasts, which it argues trample on Islamic values and are increasingly used by exiled opposition groups, especially based in Los Angeles, to stir anti-government unrest.

But according to official estimates, about three million households have access to satellite television, while security forces have in recent years only managed to seize 70,000 sets.

On January 21, Iran's Council of Guardians, a conservative-controlled legislative watchdog, rejected a bill approved by the pro-reform parliament that would have allowed limited access to satellite television.

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