Israel has signalled it will hold off on a threatened closure of the local bureau of Al Jazeera, leaving the Qatar-owned satellite station unmentioned in a government decision about emergency media regulations for Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, Reuters reports.
A statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet said it had authorised action against Lebanese pro-Iranian channel Al Mayadeen for “making wartime efforts to harm (Israel’s) security interests and to serve the enemy’s goals”.
Following the Israeli security cabinet decision, Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi was working with police on a proposed blocking of Al Mayadeen websites and seizure of equipment linked to the station, a ministry spokesperson said.
Karhi also asked the Israeli military chief in the occupied West Bank, another territory where Palestinians seek statehood, to shut down Al Mayadeen offices there, the spokesperson said. There was no immediate comment from Al Mayadeen.
Asked why Al Jazeera was not cited in the Israeli security cabinet decision, the Communications Ministry spokesperson said: “The security cabinet has not discussed that.”
Al Jazeera and the government in Doha refrained, at the time, from responding to the allegations. Israeli media have since quoted unnamed Netanyahu government officials as saying the time was not right to act against Qatar’s top media outlet.
Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said that he still favoured a crackdown on Al Jazeera. Asked in a Kan radio interview if that was diplomatically feasible, he answered: “I have made my opinion and position on the matter known.”
