Hong Kong, China - Material from the Falun Gong spiritual group interrupted a satellite transmission into mainland China, the broadcaster said Tuesday, though the group denied it was involved.
The Chinese government used the occasion to attack Falun Gong, which it bans as "an evil cult," saying via state media that the action "seriously violates the conventions of international telecommunications."
Hong Kong's Asia Satellite Telecommunications Company Ltd., or AsiaSat, said its transmission was "deliberately interrupted by illegal signals, reportedly carrying Falun Gong-related content."
The interruption at 9:34 p.m. (1334 GMT) Monday "caused a break in service of TV programming on several provincial TV channels in China," it said in a statement.
AsiaSat said it "condemns such behavior" and was investigating. It reported a similar incident in November.
Falun Gong denied involvement.
"Breaking into a satellite transmission is very difficult," said Falun Gong spokeswoman Sophie Xiao, reached by telephone in Hong Kong. "We are ordinary people. I don't think we have such expertise."
However, Falun Gong has previously said a practitioner hacked into a cable TV system in mainland China.
China banned Falun Gong on its mainland in 1999, though the group can still practice in Hong Kong, a former British colony with Western-style freedoms.
Beijing has arrested hundreds, perhaps thousands, of Falun Gong followers in its crackdown. The group alleges many have been tortured and in some cases murdered.