News Release
Intelsat Works With Sri Lankan Authorities to Halt Unauthorized Use of Its Satellite
Pembroke, Bermuda, 11 April 2007
Intelsat, the leading provider of global satellite communications, today issued a statement with regard to the unauthorized use of one of its satellites by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a Sri Lanka-based terrorist group. The U.S. State Department lists the LTTE as a foreign terrorist organization.
Intelsat officials, including its technical experts, met with Sri Lanka's Ambassador to the United States, Bernard Goonetilleke, on 10 April to discuss the steps Intelsat is taking to address the unauthorized use of one of its satellites by the LTTE. During the meeting, Intelsat's General Counsel, Phillip Spector, said, "Intelsat does not tolerate terrorists or others operating illegally on its satellites. Since we first learned of the LTTE's signal piracy, we have been actively pursuing a number of technical alternatives to halt the transmissions. We are clear in our resolve to ending this terrorist organization's unauthorized use of our satellite."
The Sri Lanka Embassy and Intelsat agree that these illegal transmissions by the LTTE are a violation of Sri Lankan and U.S. laws.
Following the discussion, Ambassador Goonetilleke said, "I am satisfied that Intelsat is taking these unauthorized transmissions very seriously, and believe it would do all that it can to stop the terrorist transmissions. I am confident that Intelsat will continue to cooperate with Sri Lankan authorities in this matter."
About Intelsat
Intelsat is the largest provider of fixed satellite services worldwide and is the leading provider of these services to each of the media, network services/telecom and government customer sectors, enabling people and businesses everywhere constant access to information and entertainment. Intelsat offers customers a greater business potential by providing them unrivaled resources with ease of business and peace of mind. Intelsat's services are utilized by an extensive customer base, including some of the world’s leading media and communications companies, multinational corporations, Internet service providers and government/military organizations. Real-time, constant communication with people anywhere in the world is closer, by far.
Contact
Nick Mitsis
nick.mitsis@intelsat.com
+1 202 944 7044
Intelsat Safe Harbor Statement:
Some of the statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements" that do not directly or exclusively relate to historical facts. The forward-looking statements made in this release reflect Intelsat's intentions, plans, expectations, assumptions and beliefs about future events and are subject to risks, including known and unknown risks. Detailed information about some of the known risks is included in Intelsat's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2006 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Because actual results could differ materially from Intelsat's intentions, plans, expectations, assumptions and beliefs about the future, you are urged to view all forward-looking statements contained in this news release with caution. Intelsat does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.