Netanyahu vows to shut Israeli office of Qatar’s Al Jazeera TV
NY Post
JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged on Monday to shutter the local office of Qatari satellite television station Al Jazeera while the war in Gaza continues.
Hours after his party spokesperson said parliament would be convened to ratify the necessary law, the Knesset approved the bill allowing the temporary closure in Israel of foreign broadcasters considered to be a threat to national security.
The law approved on Monday would allow Netanyahu and the security cabinet to shut the station for 45 days, which would be renewable, and would stay in force until the end of July or until the end of major military operations in Gaza.
Al Jazeera rejected accusations that it harmed Israel’s security as a “dangerous and ridiculous lie.”
The station, which has been fiercely critical of Israel’s military operation in Gaza, from where it has reported around the clock, has previously accused Israel of systematically targeting its offices and personnel.
Communications Minister Shlomo Karai accused Al Jazeera of encouraging hostilities against Israel. “It is impossible to tolerate a media outlet, with press credentials from the government press office and with offices in Israel, acting from within against us, certainly in wartime,” he said.
