Israel Continues Crackdown On Al Jazeera, Raids Qatari Broadcaster's Office In West Bank's Ramallah

Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera on Sunday (22 September) said that Israeli soldiers stormed its Ramallah office in the West Bank, and delivered a 45-day closure order.

According to Al Jazeera, masked and heavily armed Israeli troops entered the office early Sunday morning and handed the closure order to Walid al-Omari, the network's West Bank bureau chief.

"They did not provide a reason for the decision," Al Jazeera said.

"There is a court ruling for closing down Al Jazeera for 45 days," an Israeli soldier told journalist Walid al-Omari, Al Jazeera reported, citing the conversation which was broadcast live.

"I ask you to take all the cameras and leave the office at this moment," the soldier said in Arabic.

This raid comes months after Israel in May banned Al Jazeera’s operations within its borders, citing national security concerns.

Israeli officials had earlier raided a hotel room in Jerusalem in May, which served as Al Jazeera's temporary office.

Al Jazeera had denounced the ban, describing it as a "criminal act that violates human rights and the basic right to access of information".

"Israel's ongoing suppression of the free press, seen as an effort to conceal its actions in the Gaza Strip, stands in contravention of international and humanitarian law," the network said in a statement.

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