Georgia Apple Store refuses to sell iPad to customer who speaks Farsi

A 19-year-old college student of Iranian origin who is a US citizen claims an Alpharetta, Georgia Apple Store refused to sell her an iPad because she’s from Iran.

Photo-The Global Dispatch/Robert Herriman

According to a WSB-TV report Monday, University of Georgia student, Sahar Sabet claims the sales rep at the Apple Store inside North Pointe Mall in Alpharetta heard her and her friend speaking a language he didn’t understand.

When asked. Sabet said she was speaking Farsi, the language of Iran. At this point, the Apple employee turned them away and refused to sell them any Apple products.

According to the report, “When we said ‘Farsi, I’m from Iran,’ he said, ‘I just can’t sell this to you. Our countries have bad relations,'” Sabet said.

When asked about the incident, Apple said that it’s following US policy.

In the Apple policy showed to WSB-TV reporter, Amy Napier Viteri, it stated–the exportation, sale or supply from the U.S. to Iran of any Apple goods is strictly prohibited without authorization by the U.S. government.

In fact, the Apple Export Compliance statement says:

PROHIBITED DESTINATIONS
The U.S. holds complete embargoes against Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria

The exportation, reexportation, sale or supply, directly or indirectly, from the United States, or by a U.S. person wherever located, of any Apple goods, software, technology (including technical data), or services to any of these countries is strictly prohibited without prior authorization by the U.S. Government. This prohibition also applies to any Apple owned subsidiary or any subsidiary employee worldwide.

Even so, this was still a 19-year-old US citizen. Has Apple gone too far?