After Israel closed Al Jazeera's offices in the occupied territories, several influential organizations in the global political community criticized Israel's decision to cut off the broadcast of the Al Jazeera news channel. Johann Bach, the Palestine program leader at International Media Support (IMS) – an organization working for global press freedom – stated that this represents an attack on press freedom: “It is a major media outlet, with an audience all over the world and millions of viewers, so they have played a major role in giving the outside world access to information regarding what is happening in Gaza. So when they close their offices in Palestine and Israel and prevent access to them, this is also a major blow to press freedom. In addition, Al Jazeera, which is headquartered in Qatar, is one of the few media outlets that have journalists and cameramen inside Gaza,” according to DR and P1 Morgen.
Danish Foreign Minister's comment on Israel's decision to close Al Jazeera
According to DR, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen is also not enthusiastic about Israel's decision, stating: "Truth is always the first casualty of war, so it is important – not least in a state of war – to protect the free press. I am not happy that they have made this decision.".
Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide also criticized the closure of Norsk TV2, describing it as a “direct attack on press freedom,” after the Israeli parliament passed a new law allowing the temporary closure of foreign television stations if they are deemed a threat to the country’s security in connection with its war on Gaza.
As usual, Israel accused Al Jazeera of being a one-sided and very biased channel, and ten years ago, the then Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman tried to impose a ban on the channel, according to the Danish news agency Ritzau.
However, Al Jazeera rejects the Israeli accusations, as confirmed by Al Jazeera, which will also contact international and legal organizations to protect the rights of the channel and its employees.
The United Nations calls on Israel to change its decision.
Many have condemned or criticized the closure of Al Jazeera's offices, including the Committee to Protect Journalists, which works for press freedom, and Reporters Without Borders: “Reporters Without Borders strongly condemns the legislation that threatens freedoms and imposes censorship on a television network because of its coverage of the war in Gaza,” according to Reporters Without Borders, which works to combat abuses against journalists and media workers.
The UN Human Rights Office also opposes the decision to close Al Jazeera's operations in Israel and calls on the government to lift the ban: "Free and independent media are essential to ensuring transparency and accountability," according to a post on their X website.
