After Washington, the European Union expressed concern on Tuesday after the approval by the Israeli parliament of a law granting the government the power to prevent foreign media from operating in Israel, in particular the Qatari news channel Al Jazeera.
Israeli MPs on Monday passed a bill allowing Israel to ban the broadcast of foreign media content and close their offices in the country.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged to take “immediate steps” to close Al Jazeera offices and prevent its broadcast in Israel once the bill is passed.
“Freedom of the press must be guaranteed everywhere”
“The EU is concerned by recently adopted legislation which gives the Israeli government temporary powers to prevent foreign media from operating in Israel,” said Peter Stano, EU spokesperson for Affairs. foreign. “Freedom of the press must be guaranteed everywhere, including in contexts of war,” he added.
“Too many journalists have lost their lives and hundreds have been injured since the start of the conflict in Gaza on October 7. We strongly condemn the killings of journalists and recall the need to guarantee their access, security and protection at all times” , he added, without directly referring to Al Jazeera.
Journalists deemed “terrorist agents” by Israel
On Monday, the White House considered “concerning” a possible ban in Israel on the broadcast of the Al Jazeera channel. In January, Israeli authorities accused an Al Jazeera journalist and a freelancer killed in an airstrike in Gaza of being “terrorist agents.”
The 24-hour news channel vehemently denied the accusations and accused the Israeli army of systematically targeting its employees in the Gaza Strip.