Israel’s Government Press Office announced on Thursday that it was revoking the press cards of Al Jazeera journalists working in Israel.
In a statement, the GPO — which operates under the aegis of the Prime Minister’s Office — said the move follows the government’s May 5 decision, in accordance with an emergency law passed in April, to take the network off the air and block its broadcasts for violating national security.
The network’s journalists and broadcasters will be given a hearing before the revocation, the GPO said, adding that it will not be acting against the station’s producers and photographers.
“This is a media outlet that disseminates false content, which includes incitement against Israelis and Jews and constitutes a threat to IDF soldiers,” said GPO director Nitzan Chen in a statement. “Therefore, the use of GPO cards in the course of the journalists’ work could in itself jeopardize state security at this time of military emergency.”
The GPO press card is not mandatory for working as a journalist in Israel, but without it, it is virtually impossible to access the Israeli parliament or government ministries, or gain access to military infrastructure.
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It was not immediately clear why the GPO was only taking this step four months after police carried out the government’s order to shut down the network’s broadcasts and seized its equipment.
Police raid the Al Jazeera offices in Jerusalem on May 5, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
When contacted by AFP on Thursday, Al Jazeera’s bureau chief for Israel and Palestinian territories, Walid Omary, said the network had not been informed of the latest Israeli decision.
“When we receive [the notification officially], we will see,” Omary said.
In a text message sent to a journalists’ WhatsApp group, Omary said that 14 Al Jazeera staff members, all Israeli citizens, currently have Israeli government press cards.
The initial Knesset law allowed Israel to ban the TV station for a 45-day period, with further 45-day renewals subject to court approval. The Tel Aviv-Jaffa District Court has renewed the ban four times since then, mostly recently this week.
In its first such renewal ruling in June, the court found that there is a direct and causal connection between individuals who have carried out terror attacks inside Israel and the consumption of Al Jazeera content.
It also determined that there was a “close connection” between Al Jazeera and Hamas, that some Al Jazeera reporters in Gaza had turned themselves into “assistants and partners” with Hamas, and that some of them had even carried out terror attacks.
Last month, the IDF published a 2021 Hamas document obtained from the Gaza Strip which it said proves that Al Jazeera reporter Ismail Alghoul — who was killed in an IDF drone strike in Gaza City in August — was a member of the terror group and participated in the October 7 onslaught.
Though Israeli officials have long complained about Al Jazeera’s coverage, which they say is heavily influenced by Hamas and endangers IDF troops in Gaza, in the past they stopped short of taking action. Qatar bankrolled Palestinian construction projects in the Gaza Strip prior to the war, which were seen by all sides as a means of staving off conflict.
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
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