Eutelsat suspends Roj TV over terrorist links
January 20, 2012
Satellite provider Eutelsat has suspended a Kurdish TV station that was found guilty of breaching Denmark’s anti-terror laws.
Roj TV is appealing a Copenhagen City Court ruling that said its programmes incite terrorism, and fined it and its parent company 2.6 million kroner ($445,000) each.
In a statement, Eutelsat said “under these circumstances, Eutelsat has decided to suspend the presence of Roj TV on its satellites in order to avoid incurring criminal liability as an accomplice to terrorist activities.”
Turkey says Roj TV is a mouthpiece for the Kurdistan Workers’ Party and has urged Denmark to shut it down. The rebel group, also known as PKK, has been fighting for autonomy in southeast Turkey since 1984. The group is considered a terrorist organisation by the European Union and the US.