Israel extinguishes the Al-Jazeera television for anti-Zionist views

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered that everyone edit the Al Jazeera television networks in the country - prison

According to Ayoub Kara, Minister of Communications, an urgent bill is in the making stage that will expel the Qatari media company from Israel for its anti-Zionist views.

Jpost.com reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was recently released to the public against Al Jazeera in response to the media transfer of Palestinian terrorist attacks and rioting in Jerusalem's Old Town, saying the network had fueled a narrative against Israel.

Kara however pointed to a move in a wider Middle Eastern context, in which Saudi Arabia and other Sunni countries called for the closure of Al Jazeera as a whole, as part of their pressure on the Qatari regime.

The countries in the campaign against Qatar have no democracy in which the freedom of the press is governed.

"We are identifying with moderates in the Arab world that are fighting terrorism and religious extremism," Kara said.

"Here in Israel, there is no room for a channel that supports terrorism. We will behave like Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Bahrain and others, who have expelled the channel from their countries.

"We need to join forces and co-operate in the war against channels that preach terrorism," he said.

David Bitan, the president of the coalition of Arab countries, is also working on a draft law that would close the Al Jazeera offices in Israel, but his spokesman said he would not continue if Kara put the law to the vote.

Al Jazeera has no comment.

The Foreign Press Association, whose members are Al Jazeera journalists in Israel, said most of their journalists had ID cards issued by the government, which means they were checked by the Israeli government.

"Changing laws to shut down media organizations is a slippery terrain," the FUP said.

• 3 Aug, 2017
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