Israeli government shuts down Al Jazeera — RT World News

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government voted unanimously to halt the operations of the Qatar-based Al Jazeera channel in Israel, the government said in a statement.

Israel has long accused Al Jazeera, which remains one of the few international news channels with correspondents on the ground in Gaza, of bias against it and of collaborating with Hamas fighters. The Broadcasting Corporation denied these accusations.

Netanyahu took to X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday to announce the development, writing so “The government headed by me decided unanimously: to close the inflammatory Al Jazeera channel in Israel.”

Shortly thereafter, Israeli Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi said he had signed orders restricting broadcast operations, which would be effective immediately.

Devices “Used to deliver channel content” Including editing and directing equipment, cameras, laptops and some cell phones, will be confiscated, Haters wrote on X.

The Israeli government's decision is in line with a law passed by the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, in April, which allows the temporary shutdown in Israel of foreign broadcast stations deemed a threat to national security during the conflict in Gaza. According to the legislation, the ban requires re-certification every 45 days.

Walid Al-Omari, director of Al Jazeera in Israel and the Palestinian territories, insisted that the step taken by the Netanyahu government was a step. “dangerous” And driven by political considerations only. Al-Omari told Reuters that the radio's legal team was preparing a response to the ban.

Al Jazeera's correspondent in Gaza, Hani Mahmoud, said that the Palestinians view the closure of the news channel as a step “A desperate move to prevent fair coverage of what is happening on the ground.” In the pocket.

The island has 'Atrocities documented' And “Acts contrary to international human rights law” Mahmoud claimed, adding that it was “Which the Israeli government really didn’t like.”

The death toll from ongoing Israeli air strikes and ground offensive in Gaza has reached 34,654 people, while 77,908 others have been injured, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. The campaign was launched in response to Hamas's cross-border attack on Israel on October 7, in which at least 1,200 people were killed and 250 were taken hostage.