Press groups condemn Israel closing Al Jazeera office in Ramallah

Press state groups and rights activists person condemned the Israeli subject forcibly shutting down Al Jazeera’s office successful Ramallah, successful the occupied West Bank, calling the enactment an battle connected journalism.

Early connected Sunday morning, Israeli soldiers raided the bureau of the Qatar-based web and ordered its closure for 45 days.

The raid, captured connected unrecorded TV, showed heavy equipped Israeli troops handing an Israeli subject tribunal bid to Al Jazeera’s bureau main Walid al-Omari, informing him of the closure.

Al-Omari aboriginal said the tribunal bid accused Al Jazeera of “incitement to and enactment of terrorism” and that the Israeli soldiers confiscated the bureau’s cameras earlier leaving.

“Targeting journalists this mode aims to erase the information and forestall radical from proceeding the truth,” helium said.

During the raid, Israeli soldiers besides tore down posters of slain Palestinian American writer Shireen Abu Akleh, which were displayed connected the walls of the bureau, al-Omari said.

The Ramallah bureau raid came 5 months aft Israel unopen the quality channel’s operations successful occupied East Jerusalem and took it disconnected cablegram providers.

‘Relentless assault’

In a statement, the Committee to Protect Journalists said it was “deeply alarmed” by the Israeli raid, conscionable months aft Israel shuttered Al Jazeera’s operations successful Israel aft deeming it a menace to nationalist security.

“Israel’s efforts to censor Al Jazeera severely undermine the public’s close to accusation connected a warfare that has upended truthful galore lives successful the region,” it said.

“Al Jazeera’s journalists indispensable beryllium allowed to study astatine this captious time, and always.”

In a little connection connected X, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said it “denounces Israel’s relentless assault” connected Al Jazeera. RSF had antecedently called for the repeal of an Israeli instrumentality that allows the authorities to unopen down overseas media successful Israel, “targeting Al Jazeera channel”.

No witnesses allowed. https://t.co/jrZSRT8ONq

— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) September 22, 2024

The Palestinian Journalists Syndicate denounced Israel’s “arbitrary subject decision”, calling it “a caller aggression against journalistic enactment and media outlets”.

“We telephone connected the entities and institutions acrophobic with journalists’ rights to condemn this determination and halt its implementation,” the radical said.

The Palestinian Authority said the Israeli cognition against Al Jazeera successful Ramallah was “a flagrant violation” of property freedom.

‘Affront to property freedom’

Al Jazeera has been providing extended sum of Israel’s nearly-year-long subject offensive successful Gaza and of a parallel surge successful unit against Palestinians successful the occupied West Bank.

Four Al Jazeera journalists person been killed since the warfare successful Gaza began, and the network’s bureau successful the besieged territory was bombed. A full of 173 journalists person been killed successful Gaza since the warfare began successful October past year. Israel claims it does not people journalists.

The Al Jazeera network, which is funded by the Qatari government, has besides rejected accusations that it harmed Israel’s information arsenic a “dangerous and ridiculous lie” that puts its journalists astatine risk.

Israeli Minister of Communications Shlomo Karhi justified Sunday’s closure of Al Jazeera’s bureau, calling the web “the mouthpiece” of Gaza’s Hamas and Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah.

“We volition proceed to combat the force channels and guarantee the information of our heroic fighters,” helium said.

In a statement, however, the Al Jazeera Media Network said it “vehemently condemns and denounces this transgression enactment by the Israeli concern forces”.

“Al Jazeera rejects the draconian actions, and the unfounded allegations presented by Israeli authorities to warrant these amerciable raids,” it said.

“The raid connected the bureau and seizure of our instrumentality is not lone an onslaught connected Al Jazeera but an affront to property state and the precise principles of journalism.”

‘A bigger West Bank onslaught’

Rami Khouri, a Middle East adept astatine the American University successful Beirut, said the closure of Al Jazeera’s Ramallah bureau is successful enactment with the argumentation of Israel since 1948, “which is to forestall existent quality astir the Palestinians”.

“It astir apt means that there’s going to beryllium a bigger onslaught… of Israeli unit each implicit the West Bank. And the superior instrumentality for informing the satellite astir what Israel is doing is not going to beryllium disposable to bash it,” helium said.

Mouin Rabbani, a non-resident chap astatine the Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies, said the determination to unopen down Al Jazeera’s bureau successful Ramallah shows that Israel “clearly has thing precise superior to hide”.

“In this peculiar case, if you don’t similar the vulnerability of genocide successful the discourse of an amerciable occupation, you sprout the messenger.”

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Al Jazeera and quality agencies