The Israeli government seized some equipment belonging to the Associated Press (AP) on Tuesday, accusing the news agency of violating a recent ban against the Qatari-backed Al Jazeera network, which takes a pro-Palestinian stance.
As Breitbart News reported earlier this month, the Israeli government shut down Al Jazeera, pointing to its role in spreading anti-Israel propaganda, and the involvement of several of its freelancers in Palestinian terror organizations.
The Times of Israel reported:
Israeli officials seize a camera and broadcasting equipment belonging to The Associated Press in southern Israel, accusing the news organization of violating a new media law by providing images to Al Jazeera.
…
The AP denounced the move, saying that the Qatari satellite channel is among thousands of clients that receive live video feeds from the US news agency.
The Israeli opposition criticized the move, as did the White House.
Israeli opposition Leader Yair Lapid: “The confiscation of the equipment of the AP, the world’s largest news agency, by minister of Communications Shlomo Karhi’s people, is an act of madness. This is not Al Jazeera, this is an American media outlet that has won 53 Pulitzer…
— Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) May 21, 2024
BREAKING: White House press secretary Karine Jean Pierre told reports that the Biden administration is concerned by reports that the Israeli government confiscated equipment of the AP. She said journalists need to have the right and the ability to do their job
— Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) May 21, 2024
Israel’s communications ministry posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the AP had been given a warning, and that the camera that was seized had been used to track Israeli troop movements, with the footage then sent to Al Jazeera.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, “The Zionist Conspiracy (and how to join it),” now available on Audible. He is also the author of the e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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