Home Ministry refuses security clearance to Al Jazeera

New Delhi, May 18 (UNI) The Government has denied permission to the Doha-based Al Jazeera TV news Network to downlink its satellite feed into the country following the Union Home Ministry's reservations.

The Home Ministry has conveyed to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting that the channel's application for downlinking "has not been cleared on security grounds", sources told UNI.

Responding to media reports last year, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi had denied that the Government had banned Al Jazeera, Al-Arabia and QTV. He had said that the three channels had not formally applied for downlinking in India.

The Minister had also said the channels could apply again for permission to be downlinked, following which Al Jazeera had formally applied for registration again.

Al Jazeera, originally launched as Arabic news and current affairs channel, came into prominence after the September 11, 2001 attacks, for broadcasting footage of statements by Osama bin Laden and other Al-Qaeda leaders, and also for its reportage of massacres allegedly committed by the US Army both in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Its reportage of dissent has also created contriversies in Gulf states.

Al Jazeera launched its English-language channel in November last year.

The Gulf News Network three days back celebrated its 10th anniversary here, with the launch of a book 'The Al Jazeera Decade', which was released by Human Resource Development Minister Mr Arjun Singh.

UNI