The Qatari state-run network Al-Jazeera is facing intense criticism for supporting the Hamas terror movement in its war against the Jewish state. This prompted the government to declare that Al-Jazeera’s operation in Israel would be banned for transmitting “sensitive information” to our enemies.
Asked about a ban on Al-Jazeera and two other allegedly pro-Hamas news outlets, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday: “The government is working on something.” And it is being done by the Communications Ministry and the Defense Ministry directed. The idea is that if they cross the border with the support of Hama, we can turn off the entire channel. “
He added that shutting down a network “targets channels that cross the line in supporting Hamas.”
The Post also asked Hiat about a ban on the Qatar-owned newspaper Al-Araby and the pro-Hezbollah outlet Al Mayadeen, which operates in Israel and Judea and Samaria. It is unclear whether Israel plans to shut down the two news outlets that broadcast in support of Hamas.
Shloma Karhi, the communications minister, told Israeli Army Radio on Al-Jazeera last Sunday: “This is a channel that incites, this is a channel that films troops in assembly areas (outside Gaza) … that incites against the citizens of Israel – a propaganda mouthpiece.” An employee working in the Jerusalem office of the Qatar-based Al Jazeera network watches the news last month. (Source: AMMAR AWAD / Portal)
“It is incomprehensible that the message from Hamas spokespeople is broadcast on this channel.” He continued: “I hope we can deal with it today.”
According to a report in Ynet, the Israeli government sharpened its rhetoric against Al-Jazeera on Friday, noting that the Ministry of Communications said: “After intensive work by the Minister of Communications and his office staff with the support of the Mossad, the Shin Bet and the Ministry of Defense and after Examining all necessary legal aspects and reaching agreements with the Ministry of Justice and Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, the government approved regulations that allow the cessation of activities by a foreign broadcasting company that are harmful to the security of the state for the duration of the war.
The closure of the Al-Jazeera network in Israel comes after evidence emerged that it is aiding the enemy, broadcasting Hamas-serving propaganda in Arabic and English to viewers around the world, and even transmitting sensitive information to our enemies.”
The Mossad pushed for the ban
The Mossad told public broadcaster Kan this week that it supported a ban on Al-Jazeera because the channel showed sensitive movements of Israeli forces along the Gaza border.
Yigal Carmon, the former anti-terrorism adviser to Prime Ministers Yitzhak Shamir and Yitzhak Rabin, wrote on the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) website on Wednesday: “Qatar has two television channels that serve Hamas in wartime: Al.” – Jazeera and Al Araby. To the disgrace of Israel’s reckless and failing government, these Goebbels-like channels broadcast from Israel. On Saturday morning, October 7, Hamas commander in Gaza, Muhammad Deif, declared war on these two channels. Since then, both channels have acted as megaphones for Hamas’ military, operational and propaganda messages.”
Carmon is the president and founder of MEMRI and has argued since the outbreak of war that Israel must shut down the intelligence operations of Al-Jazeera, Al-Araby and Al Mayadeen. For his prescient article on August 31, Carmon was nicknamed “The Man Who Predicted War.” https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-764217
He continued: “Israel is in a legal state of war with emergency laws activated. Under these laws, such hostile channels could be shut down within half an hour – meaning Prime Minister Netanyahu’s deadly collaboration with Qatar continues even after the deaths of 1,400 Israelis, nearly 200 kidnappings and the nightly rocket fire on Tel Aviv is broadcast by these channels .”
According to Carmon, “The influence of Al-Jazeera and Al-Araby is enormous, both at the ideological and operational levels.” Due to the operational and ideological support of these channels, Israeli lives are put at mortal risk. And yet they continue to operate unhindered in Israel to this day.”
Former IDF military intelligence colonel Carmson said: “Qatar is Hamas and Hamas is Qatar.”
MEMRI published a report on Tuesday that included “some of the messages from Al Jazeera journalists celebrating Hamas’ mega-terror attack in Israel.”
In an October 10, 2023 post, Al Jazeera anchor Ghada Oueiss wrote: “Seriously? Has brother.” [Biden] Have we asked for our opinion on this??”
On October 7, the day of the Hamas massacre, Al Jazeera anchor Tamer Almisshal celebrated the events by saying, “Gaza is creating victory and honor for its homeland and nation.”
Al-Jazeera anchor Ahmad Mansour shared a video showing Hamas terrorists dragging two Israeli soldiers to the ground, declaring: “This historic image is worth as much as the hundreds of billions of dollars that the world’s Zionists have spent in recent years “We have invested in Israel for decades.”
Israel’s ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, published an opinion article on the Newsweek website entitled “Is Qatar a Western ally or a jihadist breeding ground?”
The ambassador wrote: “Qatar couples its financial support for terror with a sophisticated propaganda machine. State-run Al Jazeera has been instrumental in spreading anti-American and anti-Semitic content around the world. “It has cowardly exported the rhetoric of Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda to a global audience.”
Prosor added: “Qatar has gone to great lengths to whitewash these crimes and has used strategic investments to distract from its abysmal human rights record.”
The Post sent press inquiries to Al Jazeera and the government of Qatar.
The Post sent a press inquiry to the Israeli government press office on Friday regarding the activities of Al-Araby and Al Mayadeen in Israel and Judea and Samaria. Al Araby television reporter Amid Shehadeh and cameraman Rabi Munir have already reported in Jenin. The agency head of Al Mayadeen’s office in “Palestine” is Nasser al-Laham, according to his bio on the X account, formerly known as Twitter.
In 2020, al-Laham championed the anti-Semitic book “The Protocols of the Elders of Zion” in an interview with Al Mayadeen. MEMRI first localized and translated the interview. Al-Laham said: “The Emiratis and Bahrainis who are normalizing.” [their relations with Israel] believe – and I don’t know who planted this belief in them – that the Israelis love them. You clearly are not well versed in the Bible, the Talmud, or the Protocols of the Elders of Zion.”
Al-Laham continued: “Zionists do not love Arabs. The Zionists took their place.” [the Arabs] and not to occupy them. This is a direct occupation of the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain by Israel. It will be a preoccupation in the truest sense of the word – the media, the economy and politics. They’re after the Gulf’s billions. As Netanyahu boarded his plane on the stairs, he declared: “I’m going to get the billions.” He wants cash. He wants to follow Trump’s example.”