The Israeli government has banned the Qatari news organization Al Jazeera from broadcasting in Israel. The Council of Ministers meeting took this decision on Sunday with immediate effect. According to the government there, the decision was taken in response to Hamas’ reporting on the war.
“The government under my leadership has unanimously decided to close the provocative channel Al Jazeera in Israel,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a social media post.
According to Israeli media Times of Israel, Al Jazeera has been accused of inciting war and tarnishing Israel’s image worldwide. It is also mentioned that it is called an “organ that provokes Hamas”.
According to Al Jazeera, Israeli Communications Minister Shlomo Kahri ordered the confiscation of broadcasting equipment such as cameras, microphones, servers and laptops, as well as wireless transmissions. It was also ordered to confiscate the phones of journalists. Soon after, police raided Al Jazeera’s offices in Jerusalem. Satellite and cable providers cut Al Jazeera’s lines.
Calling the accusations of the Council of Ministers baseless, Al Jazeera clarified through a statement that it has no connection with Hamas. The channel had previously responded to such allegations. Al Jazeera also said Israel’s decision could affect Qatar’s efforts to stop the war. In addition, Al Jazeera says Israel’s relationship with Qatar could be in danger of deteriorating.
Netanyahu has been preparing to ban Al Jazeera for the past month. However, this required the approval of the Israeli parliament. For the first time, Netanyahu, with the help of senior ministers in parliament, passed a bill that would have banned foreign news networks that threatened the country’s security. A meeting of the Council of Ministers was then called.
However, Netanyahu can only ban the channel until July 31. A further extension of the ban would again require Parliament’s approval.