Iran's launch of a Safir satellite in January violated sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council, a panel monitoring sanctions on the country said Wednesday, DPA reported.
The panel presented a report to the 15-nation council, saying that the launch was a "clear contravention" of UN sanctions banning Iran from activities related to ballistic missile technology.
The sanctions were imposed in 2006 after Iran launched its first missile capable of carrying a nuclear weapon load.
The panel said it had received notifications from several governments that Iran has continued to "both proliferate weapons and import nuclear-related material in violation of Security Council resolutions."
During the council debate on Iran's nuclear activities, some council members said Iran had illegally exported weapons to Syria, which they claimed have been used in the harsh crackdown of the opposition.
British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant, council president, said: "We are seriously concerned by the emerging evidence of systematic Iranian activity to provide weapons illegally to the Syrian government - weapons which, as we speak, are being used to violently suppress the people of Syria."