2024-09-22 03:50:02
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Israeli soldiers entered the offices of Al Jazeera satellite news network in the occupied West Bank early Sunday and ordered it to shut down operations, in an Israeli campaign against the Qatar-funded news network. part of a wider action.
Al Jazeera broadcast live on its Arabic channel the moment the Israeli army ordered the closure of offices for 45 days. The actions were part of a special order issued in May that led Israeli police to raid Al Jazeera’s headquarters in East Jerusalem, seize its equipment, block its broadcasts in Israel and block its website.
This is the first time Israel has shut down foreign media operating in the country. However, Al Jazeera maintains operations in the West Bank and Gaza corridor, territories that the Palestinians hope to rely on for their future state.
The Israeli military did not immediately acknowledge Al Jazeera’s closure. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press. Al Jazeera condemned the measure while continuing to broadcast live from the neighboring Jordanian capital Amman.
Israeli troops entered the office and told live broadcast reporters that the Internet would be shut down for 45 days and ordered staff to leave the office immediately. Al Jazeera later aired a video showing Israeli soldiers removing the banner from a balcony used at the station’s offices. According to Al Jazeera, the banner shows the image of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, who was shot dead by Israeli forces in May 2022.
Since Hamas’s first cross-border attack on October 7, the TV station has continuously reported on the war between Israel and Hamas, and maintained 24-hour coverage of the Gaza Strip even as Israel’s fierce ground offensive caused casualties.
While Al Jazeera broadcasts live reports about war victims, its Arabic-language affiliate often broadcasts verbatim statements from Hamas and other armed groups in the region.
This led Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to claim that the network “endangers Israel’s security and incites targeting of soldiers.” The accusation was strongly denied by Al Jazeera, a media outlet largely funded by Qatar, which played a key role in negotiations between Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire to end the war.
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