BROADCASTER Al Jazeera has condemned a decision by the Palestinian Authority (PA) to close down its office in the West Bank.
The news outlet put out a statement saying the move was “nothing but an attempt to dissuade the channel from covering the rapidly escalating events” taking place in the occupied territories.
Journalists gathered at Gaza’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Hospital – the most reliable internet in the Strip to file stories from – to express outrage over the move on Thursday, with some calling it a “crime against journalism”.
On Wednesday, the PA temporarily suspended Al Jazeera in the occupied West Bank for what they described as broadcasting “inciting material and reports that were deceiving and stirring strife” in the country.
Freelance journalist Ikhlas al-Qarnawi told Al Jazeera: “Shutting down a major outlet like Al Jazeera is a crime against journalism.”
The PA decision came after Fatah, the Palestinian faction which dominates the PA, banned Al Jazeera from reporting from the governorates of Jenin, Tubas and Qalqilya in the occupied West Bank, citing its coverage of clashes between the Palestinian security forces and Palestinian armed groups in the area.
Since the beginning of the war, about 150 journalists have been working from the journalists’ tents at Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Hospital, for 20 local, international and Arab media outlets.
Al-Aqsa TV correspondent Mohammed Issa said from the hospital that the PA’s ban contradicts international laws that guarantee journalistic freedom.
“The PA’s decision obscures the truth and undermines the Palestinian narrative, especially a leading network like Al Jazeera,” Issa said, adding that the ban reinforces Israel’s narrative that “justifies the targeting of Palestinian journalists”.
The statement from Al Jazeera said: “The decision to freeze Al Jazeera’s work and prevent its journalists from conducting their duties is an attempt to hide the truth about events in the occupied territories, especially what is happening in Jenin and its camps.
“And – unfortunately – such a decision aligns with the previous action taken by the Israeli government, which closed Al Jazeera’s office in Ramallah.
“Al Jazeera is shocked by this decision, which comes at a time when the war on the Gaza Strip is still ongoing, and the systematic targeting and killing of Palestinian journalists by the Israeli occupation forces.”
The International Federation of Journalists published an annual “Killed List” this week in which it was confirmed more than 120 journalists were killed last year, with more than half of them being Palestinian.
Al Jazeera has called on the PA to retract and cancel the decision and allow journalists to cover news freely from the West Bank, but it added the move would not deter reporters from continuing professional coverage of events.
Former first minister Humza Yousaf said the decision from the PA was “misguided”.
He posted on Twitter/X: “Al Jazeera journalists have, quite literally, given their lives to ensure the world witnesses the atrocities taking place in Gaza.
“They are amongst the bravest people I know. This decision by the PA is misguided, and one I hope they will reconsider urgently.”
Wafaa Hajjaj, an independent journalist working with TRT and Sahat, said the ban made her both “sad” and “disappointed”.
“At a time when Israel is deliberately targeting and killing … journalists in Gaza, with our Jazeera colleagues at the forefront, with no international or institutional protection, the PA’s move in the West Bank comes to worsen the situation,” Hajjaj said.
“I trust Al Jazeera will persist despite all sanctions, as it has for years.”
