(Springfield, Va.) -- A judge of the US District Court for the District of Columbia ruled that the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) must disburse funds that were appropriated by Congress to Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc. (MBN).

Writing with regard to MBN and its fellow grantee Radio Free Asia, Senior Judge Royce C. Lamberth granted the two networks' Motion for a Preliminary Injunction, issuing an order requiring USAGM to "restore the FY 2025 grants … such that these international outlets 'can provide news which is consistently reliable and authoritative, accurate, objective, and comprehensive.'”

“I am delighted that the Court has ruled in our favor,” said MBN President/CEO Dr. Jeffrey Gedmin. “This is a crucial first step to allow MBN’s audience in the Middle East full access to America’s unique voice. We are now a step closer to a full return to work.”

Congress appropriated the funding for MBN on March 14, 2025. That funding was abruptly and unlawfully cut off the next day by the so-called Department of Government Efficiency and Kari Lake, senior adviser to USAGM. Starved of funds by USAGM, MBN was forced to lay off more than 90 percent of its staff on April 12.

About Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc. (MBN)
MBN is a multimedia organization whose mission is to provide audiences with Arabic-language news about the United States, important coverage of human rights and governance issues in the Middle East and North Africa, and an essential alternative to the disinformation served up by China, Russia, and Iran. MBN seeks to inform, engage, and connect with the region’s people to support universal freedoms.

MBN is a non-profit corporate media outlet financed by the U.S. government through a grant from USAGM, an independent federal agency. The USAGM is a firewall to protect broadcasters’ professional independence and integrity.