Doha:
Qatar-based network Al Jazeera on Sunday condemned as “criminal” an Israeli government attempt to ban the broadcaster from covering its coverage of the war in Gaza.
“We condemn and denounce this criminal act by Israel, which violates the human right to access information,” Al Jazeera said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter, in Arabic.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that his government had unanimously decided to close the canal.
Al Jazeera has been the focus of months of criticism of Netanyahu and his government in the latest round of a long-running feud that began well before Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza.
Israeli Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi said he had issued an order to close the channel, confiscate equipment and limit broadcasts on Al Jazeera's websites in a separate joint statement with Israel's prime minister.
Since the start of the war in Gaza on October 7, Al Jazeera has been continuously reporting on the consequences of the Israeli campaign.
The network's office in Gaza was bombed during the conflict and two of its correspondents were killed.
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