Istanbul - The head of an Iranian
satellite television network who last year was sentenced in
absentia to six years in prison by a Tehran court was shot dead
in Istanbul together with a business partner, Turkey's Dogan
news agency said on Sunday.
GEM TV founder Saeed Karimian and an associate were driving
in Istanbul's Maslak neighbourhood after 8 p.m. (1700 GMT) on
Saturday when their car was blocked by a jeep and shots were
fired, Dogan said.
Karimian was found dead by emergency services arriving at
the scene, Dogan said. His associate was taken to hospital but
could not be revived.
Dogan described both victims as being of Iranian origin. The
Hurriyet Daily News identified Karimian as a British national
and his associate as a Kuwaiti.
Two masked shooters got out of the jeep before opening fire,
Hurriyet said.
The jeep was later found abandoned and burned. Istanbul
police declined to comment on the shooting when contacted by
Reuters.
Dogan quoted the mayor of Istanbul's Sariyer district as
saying initial police findings suggested the shooting may have
prompted by a financial disagreement involving Karimian.
GEM TV is known for entertainment satellite channels that
dub foreign films and Western television programmes into Farsi
for Iranians. It also produces movies and TV series.
But in Iran, where the government tries to instil Islamic
values by strictly regulating popular culture, the satellite
broadcaster's programming has angered authorities, who view it
as part of a cultural "soft war" waged by the West.
Last year a Revolutionary Court in Tehran tried Karimian in
absentia and sentenced him to six years in jail on charges of
"acting against national security" and "propaganda against the
state".