The Knesset has approved a bill that gives the government the authority to stop the TV channel Al Jazeera’s broadcasts in Israel. This worries the White House.
Monday 1 April at 20:19
Israel’s National Assembly was convened on Monday night to vote on the law, which was passed by 70 votes to 10.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised to take immediate action to shut down Al Jazeera in Israel as soon as the law comes into force. The law means that both content from foreign TV channels can be banned from broadcasting, but also makes it possible to close Al Jazeera’s offices in Israel.
Al Jazeera is an Arabic television channel and media house owned by the State of Qatar through the Qatar Media Corporation, and is headquartered in the Qatari capital Doha. Israel has previously accused the channel of collaborating with Hamas in the war on the Gaza Strip. For several years, the Israeli government has wanted to close the channel’s operations in the country.
Al Jazeera has flatly rejected the accusations and accuses Israel of systematically attacking the channel’s staff in Gaza.
When an Al Jazeera employee and a freelancer working for the channel were killed in Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip in January, Israel claimed they were aiding and abetting terrorism. Several other Al Jazeera journalists, including the channel’s Gaza chief Wael al-Dahdouh, have also been wounded in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip.
In a statement, the White House says it is deeply concerned by the announcement that Israel will ban the channel. The White House is reportedly contacting Israel to get more information about the situation.
Tags: Israeli elected officials approve law ban Jazeera Israel
