Israeli raid on Al Jazeera bureau comes amid intensifying crackdown on journalists
As Palestinian journalists, we know that Israel and the Israeli military try to always prevent us from doing our jobs.
Just last week, when we were covering events in Jenin, an Israeli vehicle approached the Al Jazeera team and fired tear gas near us to try and prevent us from covering the massive Israeli raid on the town of Qabaltiya near Jenin in the occupied West Bank.
So it is no secret that the Israeli forces do not want Palestinian journalists to be telling their story.
We have also lost our colleagues. In 2022, Shireen Abu Akleh, who was covering an Israeli raid in the Jenin area and the Jenin refugee camp, was killed. And since the war started, we’ve been seeing more crackdowns on journalists. We’ve been seeing many of them being arrested by Israeli forces, spending a lot of time in jail, accused of inciting against the Israeli occupation or saying that they are involved in terrorism.
So the crackdown on journalism, on free speech, on people trying to expose the illegality that is the Israeli occupation and its violation against Palestinians is not something new but definitely has been increasing since the war started.
It’s been a concern for all of us, especially at Al Jazeera, that the office is going to be closed in Ramallah to follow what has happened in Israel but now we’re looking at these difficult pictures of the office being raided.
Israeli military destroying equipment in Al Jazeera’s Ramallah office
Heavily armed Israeli soldiers are seizing and destroying equipment in Al Jazeera’s offices in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, Al Jazeera’s bureau chief Walid al-Omari reports.
The soldiers also tore down a poster of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, two years after she was shot and killed by an Israeli soldier. The soldiers are confiscating the equipment even though the order only refers to shutting down the office.
Gaza Media Office condemns Israeli raid on Al Jazeera in Ramallah
The Government Media Office in Gaza has issued a statement on Telegram. Here’s some of what it said:
- “The decision by the [Israeli] occupation army to close Al Jazeera’s office in Ramallah is a legal crime and a clear violation of international law.”
- “The occupation’s decision is proof of the weakness and fragility of the Israeli narrative in the face of truth and field facts.”
- “Al Jazeera has succeeded in presenting a unique media model over many years.”
- “We strongly condemn the occupation’s decision to close Al Jazeera and prevent it from operating in Ramallah.”
- “We call on all press unions and bodies to condemn this heinous crime and resounding scandal.”
- “We call on all media outlets and journalists around the world to declare full solidarity with Al Jazeera.”
Heavy presence of armed Israeli soldiers around Al Jazeera Ramallah bureau
Al Jazeera’s Ramallah bureau chief Walid al-Omari says there is a heavy armed presence around the Al Jazeera bureau and the Manara Roundabout and they can hear gunfire and tear gas now and then. The Al Jazeera team has been pushed away from the offices, and has not been able to retrieve their vehicles yet, al-Omari added.
Timeline of Israeli bans on Al Jazeera
Here are some key dates:
- April 1 – Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, passed a law allowing Israel to temporarily shut down foreign media outlets — including Al Jazeera — if it deems them a threat to security.
- May 5 – Al Jazeera closes office in occupied East Jerusalem after Israel’s cabinet unanimously votes to shut down the network.
- September 3 – The Israeli government approves a fourth renewal of its decision to close Al Jazeera’s office in Jerusalem and ban it in Israel for another 45 days.
- September 22 – heavily armed Israeli soldiers raid Al Jazeera’s bureau in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, with an order to shut down operations for 45 days.
