Netanyahu’s Cabinet votes to close Al Jazeera offices in Israel after rising tensions

[Pelican Press 0]

Netanyahu’s Cabinet votes to close Al Jazeera offices in ******* after rising tensions

(EDITORS NOTE: Image depicts ******.) Wael Al-Dahdouh, Al Jazeera bureau chief in Gaza, center, comforts relatives at the ******** of his son, Al Jazeera journalist Hamza Dahdouh, ******* in an ******** airstrike, in Rafah, southern Gaza, on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is focused on accelerating humanitarian aid to ************ civilians in Gaza and garnering support for post-conflict Gaza’s governance. Photographer: Ahmad Salem/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Ahmad Salem | Bloomberg | Getty Images

******** Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that his government has voted unanimously to shut down the local offices of Qatar-owned broadcaster Al Jazeera.

Netanyahu announced the decision on X, formerly

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, but details on the implications of the step on the channel, when it would go into effect or whether the measure was permanent or temporary were not immediately clear.

There was no immediate comment from the channel headquarters in Doha, Qatar. An Al Jazeera correspondent on its Arabic service said the order would affect the broadcaster’s operations in ******* and in east Jerusalem, where it has been doing live shots for months since the Oct. 7 ******* that sparked the war in Gaza.

It would not affect Al Jazeera’s operations in the ************ territories, the correspondent said.

******** media said the vote allows ******* to block the channel from operating in the country for 45 days, according to the decision.

“My government decided unanimously: the incitement channel Al Jazeera will close in *******,” Netanyahu posted on X. Al Jazeera as vehemently denied that it incites against *******.

The decision escalated *******’s long-running feud against Al Jazeera. It also threatened to heighten tensions with Qatar, which owns the channel, at a time when the Doha government is playing a key role in mediation efforts to halt the war in Gaza.

******* has long had a rocky relationship with Al Jazeera, accusing it of bias against it.

Al Jazeera is one of the few international media outlets to remain in Gaza throughout the war, broadcasting ******* scenes of airstrikes and overcrowded hospitals and accusing ******* of massacres. ******* accuses Al Jazeera of collaborating with ******.

Al Jazeera, the Doha-based broadcaster funded by Qatar’s government, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

While Al Jazeera’s English operation often resembles the programming found on other major broadcast networks, its Arabic arm often publishes verbatim video statements from ****** and other militant groups in the region. It similarly came under harsh U.S. criticism during America’s occupation of Iraq after its 2003 invasion toppled director Saddam Hussein.

It ******** unclear how such an order would be enforced by *******.

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