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Satellite imaging steadfast Planet Labs said connected Saturday (April 4, 2026) it will indefinitely withhold visuals of Iran and the portion of struggle in the West Asia to comply with a petition from the U.S. government.
California-based Planet Labs announced the determination successful an email to customers and said the U.S. authorities had asked each satellite imagery providers to indefinitely withhold images of the struggle region. The regularisation expands upon a 14-day hold connected imagery of the West Asia that Planet Labs imposed past month, a determination the steadfast said was meant to forestall adversaries from utilizing it to onslaught the U.S. and its allies.
Planet Labs said it volition withhold imagery dating backmost to March 9 and that it expects the argumentation to stay successful effect until the struggle ends. The warfare began erstwhile the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran connected February 28, and the struggle dispersed successful the portion erstwhile Tehran responded by launching its ain attacks connected Israel and U.S. bases successful Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain.
Military uses of outer exertion see people identification, weapons guidance, rocket tracking and communications. Some abstraction specialists accidental Iran could beryllium accessing commercial imagery, including pictures obtained via U.S. adversaries. Satellite images besides assistance journalists and academicians studying hard-to-reach places.
Planet Labs, which operates a large fleet of Earth-imaging satellites and sells often updated images to governments, companies and media, did not respond to a petition for further comment.
The Pentagon said it does not remark connected intelligence-related matters.
Planet Labs said successful its email to customers that it would power to a “managed organisation of images” deemed not to airs a hazard to safety. Under a caller system, Planet Labs volition merchandise imagery connected a case-by-case ground for urgent, mission-critical requirements oregon successful the nationalist interest.
“These are bonzer circumstances, and we are doing each we tin to equilibrium the needs of each our stakeholders,” the steadfast said.
One commercialized provider, Vantor, formerly Maxar Technologies, told Reuters that it was not contacted by the U.S. government. Vantor for years has reserved the close to “implement enhanced entree controls during times of geopolitical conflict” and currently has applied them for parts of the West Asia, a institution spokesperson said in a statement.
Those controls tin see limits connected who tin petition caller images oregon bargain existing pictures of regions wherever the U.S. subject and its allies are “actively operating,” and areas “actively targeted by adversaries,” the spokesperson said.
One different commercialized supplier contacted by Reuters, BlackSky Technology, did not instantly instrumentality a petition for comment.
