The decision was made with the support of a newly instituted law from April that gives Israel’s prime minister and communications minister the power to block foreign news channels if they are believed to pose a risk to the country’s security.
The opposition says in a statement that it stands behind the decision, but also that the timing of the shutdown of Al Jazeera could damage the ongoing negotiations with Hamas, writes Haaretz.
During the day, the police raided the channel’s office in Jerusalem and, on orders from Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, confiscated cameras, computers and memory cards, among other things.
Promises legal action
Since October 7, Al Jazeera has been criticized on several occasions by, among others, Prime Minister Netanyahu, who called them a terrorist channel, for engaging in one-sided and biased reporting.
2021 wrote The Times of Israel that Al Jazeera’s temporary Gaza editorial office received an award from Hamas for its coverage of a series of conflicts between the terrorist organization and Israel that same year.
Al Jazeera is one of the few media houses that reported from inside Gaza during the war. They condemn Israel’s actions and say their lawyers are preparing a countermeasure.
“The network strongly denies the allegations made by Israeli authorities that suggest a breach of professional media standards,” they write.
