U.S. shuts down British media Web sites

[Mr2005]

By request from the United States, British authorities shut down 20 independent media Web sites without explanation, The Guardian reported Monday.

A court order was issued Thursday to Rackspace, a U.S.-owned web hosting company in Uxbridge, forcing it to hand over two servers used by Indymedia, an international media network.

Rackspace said the order was issued under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, in which countries assist each other in investigations such as international terrorism, kidnapping and money laundering.

The Web sites affected by the seizure span 17 countries.

However, there is confusion over how the treaty applies, as British police were unaware of the order, and it is not known if Britain's Home Office was involved. It's also unknown where the servers were taken, the newspaper said.

The British Indymedia site was working Monday, as it had been backed up on another server, unlike the others that were shut down.



http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/?sid=7c57aed95dfdc89f

[Vickers]

1. At the request of Swiss and Italian authorities?

:shrug:

http://www.statewatch.org/news/2004/oct/04uk-usa-indymedia.htm

[tuvor]

2. There goes another shred of democracy.

So they're British and not American, whatever.

Shouldn't this go in breaking news?

[jobycom]

3. Wonder if they accidentally said something nice about Cat Stephens

That would piss off Bush, and make him pull the plug.

[Gaffey Duck]

4. What's going on?

What the Hell is going?

</chumbawamba>

[Steelangel]

5. does it mean that we will not see any news-articles from

Guardian on their website?

That article is not clear.. well, something fishy about USA and their orders.

[muriel_volestrangler]

7. No, it was the Indymedia sites that were the target

The Guardian was just the newspaper that reported on this on Monday.

The story has been building since Thursday:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/10/08/fbi_indymedia_raids/
Feds seize Indymedia servers

While Indymedia is not exactly sure what prompted the action, the group does have one strong idea. A French Indymedia site last month posted photos of what it believed to be undercover Swiss police officers photographing protesters at a French event. Indymedia received a request from the FBI to pull those photos down, as they "revealed personal information" about the undercover police, said Indymedia press officer Hep Sano.

"I apologize for the delay in responding. I have been trying to get a hold of the FBI agent I spoke with before, but haven't been able to at this time," wrote a Rackspace official to Indymedia earlier this week, according to Sano. "As the request originated with the Swiss police, I can only speculate on what they saw or what they were concerned about. However, at this time, I have received no further communications from either the FBI or the Swiss authorities, so I feel like we can close this this issue."
...
"They never clarified what they meant by personal information," she said. "The photos were taken on a public street."

Indymedia believes the photos were eventually pulled, but ironically cannot check on this as it no longer has access to the servers or hard disks. The group has not been notified if the FBI is even involved in this seizure or whether or not the servers or just hard disks were confiscated.

As people say, this may be a general fishing expedition, using the photos as an excuse. Indymedia is a site that seems to allow just about anyone to put up 'news stories' without checking by anyone (so really should be regarded as a bulletin board, rather than a news organisation). The FBI, or whoever, may have been hoping to get the details of who originated some stories on there.

It worries me that this seizure happened so easily in the UK, and it didn't even need the police, it seems - just David Blunkett and his Home Office apparatchiks.

[fujiyama]

6. This is the US right?

Not China?

Some supposed bastion of democracy. I'm feeling sick. Day by day...we become more of a police state.

[shelley806]

8. Damn

This is frightening. Is this an historical first?

[in_cog_ni_to]

9. Next up, DU and any other web site

that the regime doesn't like. The movie "Orwell Rolls in His Grave" says that the regime has been trying to figure out a way to get a grip on the internet. It seems they've figured out a way. Hold on to your socks people, shit is about to hit the fan! What will I do without DU? How will I know what the hell is REALLY happening in the world without the non state owned internet? :scared:

[KoKo]

10. Police took photo's of all of us at both Cheney and Bush visits in NC..

Even the local anti-Iraq Invasion and Peace protests I've attended here in NC have had "independent" folks with professional equipment taking photos of all of us and our signs. But the Cheney & Bush Protests were the first that the "Police" in uniform took our pictures.

I imagine we must be on "watch lists." :-(

[tom_paine]

11. Were the Jews on Nazi Watch Lists?

You bet your ass we are.