Gulf | Qatar

Al Jazeera 'surprised' at boycott imposed by Israel

Israel said on Wednesday it would impose sanctions on the Qatari satellite network, accusing it of biased coverage in favour of the Hamas movement.

  • By Barbara Bibbo'Correspondent
  • Published: 00:29 March 14, 2008
  • Gulf News

Doha: The Qatar-based Al Jazeera news channel reacted with surprise to the news of a boycott by Israeli authorities on Wednesday saying the channel had not received any information on an alleged ban from the country.

"Al Jazeera was very surprised today to hear the broadcast on Israeli radio regarding an Israeli governmental decision to boycott Al Jazeera. Al Jazeera wants to state that we have not received any formal communication from the Israeli government on this issue," said a statement issued by the station on Wednesday night

"We would like to further state that Al Jazeera has always endeavoured to cover the news in a fair and balanced professional manner from its inception and we will continue to report the news from across all parts of the world in accordance with the highest journalistic standards."

Israel said on Wednesday it would impose sanctions on the Qatari satellite network, accusing it of biased coverage in favour of the Hamas movement.

In a Army Radio interview Israeli deputy foreign minister Majallie Whbee, said a boycott of the news network was necessary.

Terrorists

"Discussions on the matter were held in the Foreign Ministry, and I decided that we would boycott the channel. Al Jazeera has turned into a mouthpiece for terrorists. These reports are not credible, they harm us, and they spur people into carrying out acts of terror."

He also said Israeli ministers will refuse to do interviews and will deny visa applications from its staff.

According to media reports yesterday the Israeli foreign ministry was about to send a letter to Al Jazeera calling for dialogue to discuss the matter.

Israelis were disappointed by Al Jazeera's coverage of the recent killings of more than 120 Palestinian civilians including children by Israeli incursions in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. Three Israelis were also killed as a result of Hamas rocket fire, before the fighting ceased earlier this month.

Israel and Qatar have low-level diplomatic ties. Israel had so far allowed Al Jazeera to operate within its borders.

  • Rate this article
  • Average reader rating (0 votes) 0 Stars
Tools

Emailing an article to friend is a simple way to share a news item. Your friend will receive an email with your name and email address as well any personal message you choose to send.

The information you provide on this page will not be used to send unsolicited emails.

This service is not intended to encourage spam, and action may be taken against individuals who maliciously enter personal details of another individual.

Share this article

More from Qatar

  1. Qatar benefits from diversification

  2. Foreign policy earns friends and enemies

  3. Qatar introduces 10% flat corporate tax

  4. Qatar's Amir donates $5million to Islamic research centre

All articles in Qatar

More from Gulf

Gulf News
Popular in News
News Editor's choice