Israel's decision to prohibit Al Jazeera: What are the implications, and what comes next?

Israel’s cabinet unanimously voted on Sunday to close down Al Jazeera within the country, swiftly mandating the shutdown of its offices and prohibiting the company's broadcasts. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu disclosed the decision on X. Shortly after, Israel’s Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi released footage on X, depicting Israeli authorities, including Ministry of Communications inspectors accompanied by police, raiding Al Jazeera's office in East Jerusalem and seizing the channel’s equipment.

Here's everything you need to understand about Israel's ban on Al Jazeera and its potential impact on reporting the Gaza conflict and beyond.

Why did Israel close down Al Jazeera?

The closure follows a month after Israel's parliament, the Knesset, passed a law on April 1, granting Israel the authority to temporarily shut down foreign media outlets, including Al Jazeera, if it perceives them as a security threat.

In a previously recorded report, Al Jazeera's Imran Khan, reporting from occupied East Jerusalem, elaborated on the law's provisions. According to the law, the Al Jazeera website is prohibited in Israel, encompassing all means of access, including passwords, whether paid or unpaid, and whether stored on Israeli servers or elsewhere, Khan added.

Moreover, Khan clarified that the Al Jazeera television channel is entirely prohibited in Israel. Cable providers within the nation now display a notice stating that the network is banned from broadcasting. However, in East Jerusalem, some individuals informed Al Jazeera that they were still able to access the channel on television as of Monday afternoon.

Furthermore, Khan noted that the internet service provider hosting aljazeera.net "is also at risk of being fined for hosting the website."

Akiva Eldar, a political analyst and contributor to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, shared with Al Jazeera that the closure is "a highly populist gesture aimed at appeasing public sentiment, which is deeply dissatisfied with the government's actions in Gaza and on the international stage." He added that it is also intended "to satisfy the demands of partners from the radical right." Netanyahu's administration depends on backing from a coalition of far-right parties and figures, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir, many of whom hold significant positions in the cabinet.

Karhi's office stated that Al Jazeera is closed for a period of 45 days, with the possibility of renewal, as per the law enacted on April 1.

Although Netanyahu pledged immediate action upon the law's passage to halt Al Jazeera's operations, the timing of the shutdown, occurring a month later, aligns with crucial negotiations between Israel and Hamas over the war, mediated by Egypt and Qatar, where Al Jazeera is headquartered.

Israel has previously targeted Al Jazeera: Netanyahu threatened to close its Jerusalem office in 2017, and an Israeli missile destroyed the building housing the broadcaster's Gaza office in 2021. Numerous Al Jazeera journalists, along with their families in some instances, have been casualties of Israeli firing or bombing, including during the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

How did Al Jazeera respond?

Al Jazeera issued a statement on Sunday denouncing the shutdown, labeling it a "criminal act" and cautioning that Israel's crackdown on the free press "violates international and humanitarian law."

The statement also affirmed that Al Jazeera remains committed to delivering news to its global audience.

What implications does the ban have for Al Jazeera's reporting?

Al Jazeera's correspondents are now unable to report from Israel, including occupied East Jerusalem, as both the main office in West Jerusalem and the office in occupied East Jerusalem have been closed and their equipment confiscated.

Karhi stated that the confiscated equipment included editing and routing tools, cameras, microphones, servers, laptops, wireless transmission equipment, and some mobile phones.

In the pre-recorded report, Al Jazeera's Khan noted that Israel is also prohibiting any device used for content provision, including mobile phones. "That includes my mobile phone. If I use it for any news gathering, the Israelis can simply seize it."

While the impact of the shutdown on reporting by Al Jazeera correspondents in Gaza or the occupied West Bank remains unclear, access to both Palestinian regions is largely controlled by Israel. Al Jazeera has described previous attacks on its journalists and offices as attempts to stifle its journalism and prevent it from covering Israel's assaults on Palestinians, including during the current conflict.

Why is this noteworthy?

Since the start of the conflict on October 7, Israel has largely restricted entry into Gaza for foreign journalists.

This has led to Al Jazeera's correspondents in Gaza being among the few from a major international media outlet to report on the deadly Israeli bombardment and killings in the Palestinian enclave to a global audience.

In February, over 50 international broadcast journalists signed an open letter to Egyptian and Israeli authorities, urging for "free and unrestricted access to Gaza for all foreign media."

What are the responses to the Al Jazeera ban?

Journalism advocacy groups and officials from various countries condemned the ban, expressing concerns that it could impede the free flow of information and undermine democratic principles.

"Israel prides itself on being a democracy, yet the notion that it can simply shut down an internationally respected and historically significant broadcaster is appalling," remarked Tim Dawson of the International Federation of Journalists in an interview with Al Jazeera. "Unfortunately, it's part of a series of actions taken by the Israeli government to suppress free reporting on this conflict."

Speaking from the White House in Washington, DC, on Monday, National Security Advisor John Kirby reiterated the United States President Joe Biden administration's opposition to the closure of Al Jazeera in Israel.

“We don’t support that action, as we said very clearly on World Press Freedom Day on Friday,” Kirby explained.

“The work of independent journalism around the world is absolutely vital. It’s important to an informed citizenry and public, but it’s also important to help inform the policy-making process. So we don’t support that at all.”

The UN human rights office also condemned the shutdown in a post on the social media platform X on Sunday.

On Monday, Greek economist and former Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis denounced the shutdown in a post on X. "Israel's prohibition of Al Jazeera is a facet of its War On Truth. It seeks to hinder Israelis from understanding what occurs in Gaza," he stated.

On X, numerous individuals mentioned Israel's announced intention to initiate a ground incursion in Gaza's Rafah, marking its most recent land offensive in seven months of ongoing conflict, during which over 34,700 individuals have lost their lives.

What lies ahead?

We Came to know that Eldar, spoken to Al Jazeera from Tel Aviv, expressed, "This is, I'm afraid, not the final step."

He suggested that other news organizations could also face closure by the Israeli government. "We know that there are ministers, including the communications minister, who are scrutinizing other networks, including Israeli channels, that do not align with the government's views."

In November, Karhi, the communications minister, threatened Eldar's newspaper, Haaretz, with penalties over its critical coverage of Israel's actions in Gaza.

Eldar also anticipated that the law utilized by the Netanyahu government to shut down Al Jazeera would be contested in court.

Al Jazeera has urged media freedom and human rights organizations to denounce the shutdown and is currently evaluating its next steps. In a statement released on Sunday, the media network declared its intention to explore "all available legal avenues to safeguard both its rights and its journalists."