The Palestinian Authority on Wednesday ordered the suspension of Qatar-based Al Jazeera’s broadcasts in the Palestinian territories, accusing the network of broadcasting “inflammatory material”, official media reported.
“The Special Ministerial Committee, consisting of the ministries of culture, interior and communications, has decided to suspend broadcasting and freeze all activities of the Al Jazeera satellite channel and its office in Palestine,” the official Wafa news agency said.
“The decision also includes temporarily halting the work of all journalists, staff, employees and affiliated channels until their legal status improves due to Al Jazeera’s violations of applicable laws and regulations in Palestine,” the report said.
“This decision comes in response to Al Jazeera’s insistence on broadcasting inflammatory content and reports that contain misinformation, incitement, sedition, and interference in Palestinian internal affairs,” it said.
An Al Jazeera employee contacted by AFP confirmed that the network’s office in Ramallah had received the suspension order on Wednesday.
Later on Wednesday, the channel aired images showing Palestinian security officials entering the network’s office in Ramallah and handing over the suspension order, but there was still no reaction from the channel on the Palestinian Authority’s move.
The extremist group Hamas condemned the decision to ban the network.
“This decision is in line with a series of recent arbitrary actions taken by the Authority to curtail public rights and freedoms and tighten its security grip over the Palestinian people,” Hamas said in a statement.
“We call on the Palestinian Authority to immediately reverse this decision… It is important to ensure continuity of media coverage that exposes the occupation and supports the perseverance of our people.”
– ‘Campaign of provocation’ –
Tensions have risen between the Doha-based network and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah movement in recent weeks following the channel’s coverage of clashes between Palestinian security forces and militants in Jenin.
In late December, the channel condemned it, saying it was Fatah’s “provocative campaign” against the network in some areas of the occupied West Bank.
“This operation follows the network’s coverage of clashes between Palestinian security forces and resistance fighters in Jenin,” it said in a statement at the time.
“Throughout its coverage of the tragic events in Jenin, Al Jazeera ensured the presence of all voices, including those of resistance fighters and spokespersons for the Palestinian security forces.”
Palestinian Authority security forces, which exercise limited control over the West Bank, have been engaged in deadly clashes with gunmen since early December, leading to the arrest of several militants.
They are fighting members of the Jenin Battalion, most of whom are affiliated with either Islamic Jihad or Hamas, whose October 7, 2023 attack on Israel sparked the Gaza War.
Eleven people, including PA security personnel, militants and civilians, have been killed in violence in the Jenin refugee camp, a stronghold of armed groups in the northern West Bank and a frequent target of Israeli military raids.
The Palestinian Authority’s decision comes more than three months after Israeli forces raided the network’s office in Ramallah.
The network is already banned from broadcasting from Israel amid a long-running dispute with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, which has worsened amid the ongoing war in Gaza.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
