After Al Jazeera office closure, what's next for press freedom in Israel?
The closure of the Ramallah Al Jazeera office came after the office in Jerusalem was shut down by order of the Israeli government last May.
JERUSALEM — The closure of Al Jazeera's offices in the Israeli-occupied West Bank in late September, in accordance with an Israeli military order, constituted another phase in the campaign that Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi has been championing against media outlets he deems anti-Israeli. The campaign could also target Israeli channels in the future.
Broadcast live to millions around the world, the closure is raising questions about democratic freedoms under the most right-wing government in Israeli history.
Masked, armed soldiers raided the offices of the Qatari media outlet in the Palestinian city of Ramallah in the predawn hours of Sept. 22, presenting a closure order for 45 days signed by the Israeli commander of the region, Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth. The troops ordered veteran journalist Walid al-Omari, known to millions of viewers in the Arab world and beyond, to shut down the office. Omari broadcast the event live, reading the military order out loud in front of the soldiers. "They ask us to leave immediately and take our personal things," Omari is heard saying in front of the cameras.
Behind the closure
