The Israeli government says it will prevent Al Jazeera from broadcasting in the country

Israel’s parliament has approved a law that gives the government the authority to ban TV channels, including Al Jazeera, a network owned by the state of Qatar.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would “act immediately” to close the network’s local office.

The United States expressed its concern about the move. With foreign journalists being banned from entering Gaza, Al Jazeera’s staff in the strip have been some of the only journalists who have been able to cover the war on the ground.

The Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, approved the bill allowing foreign networks deemed a threat to national security to be “temporarily” banned. The ban would be in place for 45 days at a time, which could be renewed.

The law will remain in effect until July or until the end of major fighting in Gaza.”

Al Jazeera will no longer broadcast from Israel,” Mr. Netanyahu wrote on Twitter/X, calling the network a “terrorist channel”. For years, Israeli officials have accused the network of anti-Israel hatred.

But their criticism of the broadcaster has grown since the October 7 attacks by Hamas.

Authorities claim it has close ties to Hamas, which Al Jazeera vehemently denies.

In a statement, Al Jazeera said: “Netanyahu has not been able to give the world a fair reason for his ongoing attacks on Al Jazeera and freedom of the media except to present new lies and inflammatory scandals against the Internet and the rights of its workers.

“Al Jazeera is holding the Prime Minister of Israel responsible for the safety of its staff and the network’s facilities around the world, following his incitement and this shamefully false accusation.”