Israel has ordered the local offices of Qatar's Al Jazeera satellite news network to close.
TIA GOLDENBERG and JON GAMBRELL Associated PressSome diplomatic voices have reported progress in Gaza cease-fire talks happening this weekend in Cairo.Israel ordered the local offices of Qatar's Al Jazeera satellite news network to close Sunday, escalating a long-running feud between the broadcaster and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hard-line government as Doha-mediated cease-fire negotiations with Hamas hang in the balance.
"Al Jazeera reporters harmed Israel's security and incited against soldiers," Netanyahu said in a statement. "It's time to remove the Hamas mouthpiece from our country." The Israeli government has taken action against individual reporters over the decades since its founding in 1948, but broadly allows for a rambunctious media scene that includes foreign bureaus from around the world, even from Arab nations. That changed with a law passed last month, which Netanyahu's office says allows the government to take action against a foreign channel seen as "harming the country.
Qatar has had strained ties with Netanyahu in particular since he made comments suggesting that Qatar is not exerting enough pressure on Hamas to prompt it to relent in its terms for a truce deal. Qatar hosts Hamas leaders in exile at a political office in Doha. "Rather than trying to silence reporting on its atrocities in Gaza, the Israeli government should stop committing them," he added.Shortly after the government's decision, Cabinet members from the National Unity party criticized its timing, saying it "may sabotage the efforts to finalize the negotiations and stems from political considerations." The party said that in general, it supported the decision.
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Israel orders Al Jazeera satellite news network to close local operationThe extraordinary order includes confiscating broadcast equipment and preventing the broadcast of the channel’s reports and blocking its websites.
Read more »
Netanyahu’s Cabinet votes to close Al Jazeera offices in IsraelThe country has long had a rocky relationship with Al Jazeera.
Read more »
Netanyahu’s Cabinet votes to close Al Jazeera offices in Israel following rising tensionsTheextraordinary move is believed to be the first time Israel has evershuttered a foreign news outlet.
Read more »
Netanyahu's Cabinet votes to close Al Jazeera offices in Israel after rising tensionsIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that his government has voted unanimously to shut down the local offices of Qatar-owned broadcaster Al Jazeera.
Read more »
Israel to close Al Jazeera, confiscate news channel's broadcast equipment, block websiteIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that his government will close the Qatar-based news channel Al Jazeera's operations inside Israel, confiscate the network's broadcast equipment, and block access to its website.
Read more »
Netanyahu's Cabinet votes to close Al Jazeera offices in Israel following rising tensionsIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his government has voted unanimously to shutter the offices of the Qatar-owned broadcaster Al Jazeera in Israel.
Read more »