Israeli soldiers have raided the Al Jazeera bureau in Ramallah, occupied West Bank, and handed a 45-day closure order to the network’s bureau chief without providing a reason. This comes after a similar ban on reporting from inside Israel earlier this year. The raid has been condemned by media rights groups, with the Government Media Office in Gaza calling it a “deafening scandal” and a violation of press freedom.
Al Jazeera journalists have been targeted and killed by Israeli forces, with 173 journalists killed since the start of the war in Gaza last year. The network has also faced attacks prior to the war, including the killing of veteran correspondent Shireen Abu Akleh in 2022. Al Jazeera has criticized Israel’s suppression of the free press and its efforts to conceal actions in the Gaza Strip.
The raid highlights Israel’s control over the occupied West Bank and its crackdown on journalists. The closure of the bureau is seen as an attempt to prevent the truth from coming out, but media experts believe that journalists will continue to cover the situation in the region. The United Nations General Assembly recently voted for an end to the Israeli occupation, further emphasizing the need for independent journalism in the region.
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Photo credit www.aljazeera.com
