IRAN LIKELY AGAIN JAMMING VOA BROADCASTS

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 001033 SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/ARP, R, BBG AND IBB E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/28/2019 TAGS: PREL OIIP BBG KPAO KU IR SUBJECT: IRAN LIKELY AGAIN JAMMING VOA BROADCASTS REF: KUWAIT 957 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Political Counselor Pete O'Donohue for reasons 1.4 b and d ¶1. (C) Kuwait-based Interational Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) staff on October 28 noted that, beginning at 0255 UTC on that date, a powerful CW jamming spike disrupted the Voice of America Persian News Network Television feed on TurkSat 2A. The VOA feed is the newest of the five VOA PNN TV satellite feeds that target Iran. ¶2. (C) The suspected Iranian jamming occurred less than ten days after the TurkSat feed was established -- as a replacement for the VOA PNN TV broadcast that BBG previously located on ArabSat Bader 4. The PNN feed was dropped by ArabSat controllers on October 5 due to suspected Iranian jamming. Predictably, the TurkSat response has been the same -- because the VOA PNN TV resides in the MCPC bundle alonw with numerous non-USG broadcasts, all broadcast feeds located in that bundle are equally affected by the jamming spike, so TurkSat controllers have temporarily removed the VOA PNN TV signal from the bundle to ascertain whether the jamming will cease. ********************************************* ********* For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: visit Kuwait's Classified Website at: http://www.intelink.sgov.gov/wiki/Portal:Kuwa it ********************************************* ********* JONES