Police raided the office of Al Jazeera after the order to shut down the Qatari television network
Israeli police raided a Jerusalem hotel room used by Al Jazeera as its de facto office, following a government decision to suspend the Qatari-owned broadcaster’s operations in the country, an Israeli official and an Al source said. Jazeera at Reuters.
Videos released online show plainclothes officers dismantling camera equipment in a hotel room. Al Jazeera’s source said the hotel is located in East Jerusalem.
Israeli police have entered Al Jazeera’s office in Jerusalem in order to forcibly close it. pic.twitter.com/qwt4NAZN5j
The cabinet under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has shut down the network while the war in Gaza continues, arguing that Qatari television threatens national security.
Al Jazeera called the decision a criminal act and rejected the accusation that the network threatens national security, calling it a “dangerous and ridiculous lie” that puts its journalists at risk.
It said it reserved the right to “pursue any legal action.”
There has been no official comment from the Qatari government, which Al Jazeera referred to.
“If you’re watching this… then Al Jazeera has been banned in Israel.”
Al Jazeera’s @ajimran recorded his last report from occupied East Jerusalem, pre-empting the Netanyahu gov’t’s unanimous decision to close Al Jazeera in Israel ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/ZOzqxpSKGJ
Al Jazeera has previously called Israel’s efforts to curtail its operation an “escalation” and said in a statement in early April that it “comes as part of a series of systematic Israeli attacks to silence Al Jazeera”.
He said that Israeli authorities had deliberately targeted and killed several of his journalists, including Samer Abu Daqqa and Hamza AlDahdouh who were killed in Gaza during the war. Israel has said it does not target journalists.
Qatar founded Al Jazeera in 1996 and sees the network as a way to boost its global profile.
“Al Jazeera Media Network strongly condemns and denounces this criminal act that violates human rights and the basic right of access to information,” the network said in a statement. “Al Jazeera asserts its right to continue providing news and information to its global audience.”
The UN Human Rights Office also criticized the shutdown of the network.
“We regret the government’s decision to shut down Al Jazeera in Israel,” he told X. “A free and independent media is essential in order to ensure transparency and accountability. Now, even more so given the strong restrictions on broadcasting from Gaza . Freedom of expression is a critical human right. We call on the government to reverse the ban.”
Israel’s parliament last month approved a law allowing Israel to temporarily shut down foreign television networks deemed to pose a threat to national security.
The law allows Netanyahu and his cabinet to close the network’s offices in Israel for 45 days, which can be renewed, so that it remains in effect until the end of July or until the end of major military operations in Gaza.
Qatar, home to several Hamas political leaders, is trying to broker a ceasefire and hostage release deal that could end the war in Gaza.
