Israeli forces raided Al Jazeera’s Ramallah offices early Sunday, ordering the news broadcaster to shut down for 45 days.
The armed soldiers, masked and heavily equipped, entered the building during a live broadcast and presented the closure order to Walid al-Omari, the bureau chief, who read it aloud on air.
This raid follows similar actions by Israeli authorities in Nazareth and East Jerusalem earlier this year, with Al Jazeera repeatedly accused of being a threat to national security. Al-Omari condemned the move, stating it was an attempt to “erase the truth.”
Witnesses reported that Israeli soldiers confiscated equipment and removed a poster of Shireen Abu Aqla, a journalist killed by Israeli fire during a previous raid in the West Bank.
While initially blaming Palestinian gunfire, later assessments pointed to Israeli responsibility for her death.
Tensions between Al Jazeera and the Israeli government have escalated since the outbreak of the Gaza war, with the network accused of promoting terrorism, a claim Al Jazeera denies.
In April, Israel passed a law allowing the temporary closure of foreign media deemed a threat to national security. However, no official statement has yet been made by the Israeli government regarding this recent raid.
