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Iranian Satellite Jamming In Shiraz Could Cause 24,000 Cancer Cases In Coming Years

Confiscated satellite dishes awaiting destruction by Iranian authorities. Photograph courtesy of Islamic Republic News Agency.

Iranian politicians representing the city of Shiraz in the Fars district of Iran have publicly claimed that Iranian government satellite jamming activities are causing significant health problems for their constituents.

Members of the Iranian parliament (called the Majlis in Farsi), Ali Akbari and Masoud Rezaee, have been vocal in their criticism of the Iranian government’s satellite jamming, and more specifically have blamed Iranian military and law enforcement agencies for carrying out this harmful activity.

The satellite jamming activity in Shiraz is so prevalent that mobile telephone networks and domestic radio and television broadcasts are regularly disrupted, and the Iranian Meteorological Organisation is often unable to conduct weather forecasting in the area.

Ali Akbari claims that Iranian public broadcasting officials state that the radio and television disruptions are due to “structural changes” in national radio and television broadcasting, and should end soon. Akbari, however, does not seem to be convinced and is quoted by Iranian media as saying, “Since the telecommunication company says that they’re unaware of the jamming activities and political entities also say that they have done nothing in this regard, so it could only be military and law enforcement organizations that are responsible for sending these jamming signals.”

Masoud Rezaee, a Shiraz representative, has repeatedly stated publicly that local satellite jamming activity is causing widespread headaches among Shiraz residents, especially in the western part of the city. According to Iranian reports, things have become so bad that Shiraz residents staged protests outside of the office of the governor or Fars region in mid-January 2017, and were not satisfied with the response of regional and national officials. Police forces had to disperse the protestors as the started to chant slogans demanding the end to satellite jamming in Shiraz.

Iranian government officials and state media have repeatedly cited expert opinion for some time now that claims satellite jamming poses a serious public health problem. Some experts have even suggested that satellite jamming is a “silent killer of citizens,” stating that the electromagnetic waves emitted by jammers are the cause of serious illnesses.

Some Shiraz residents have even posted pictures of satellite jammers used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the area, to include a Chinese-made Mator-8 jammer said to cost U.S.$8 million. The Mator-8 jammer is so powerful that it can emit electromagnetic energy over a 400-kilometer range.

Medical authorities in the Shiraz area estimate that local satellite jamming activity is likely to result in at least 24,000 cancer cases in the coming years, and a senior Iranian health official has stated publicly that, “recent studies show that jamming signals and waves have side effects and can increase the risk of cancer.”

SpaceWatch Middle East has regularly reported on Iranian satellite jamming and its claimed side effects, and will continue to do so in the future.

Original published at: https://spacewatch.global/2017/04/iranian-satellite-jamming-shiraz-cause-24000-cancer-cases-coming-years/

 

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