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Israeli PM Netanyahu revives push to shut down Al Jazeera

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Israeli PM Netanyahu revives push to shut down Al Jazeera

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held wide-ranging discussions with senior U.S. officials this week and sought to lower the temperature between the two governments. Gallant, though not part of Netanyahu's inner circle, is a key architect of the campaign against Hamas in retaliation for the militants' Oct. 7 rampage that Israel says killed 1,200 people. Israel's military response has killed more than 32,000 Palestinians, according to the health authorities in the Hamas-run enclave. The Israeli team will still be led by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi, two of Netanyahu's close confidants, according to a person familiar with the matter. The talks are expected to focus on Israel's threatened offensive in Rafah, where more than a million displaced Palestinians are sheltering. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Wednesday, "We do," when asked if the U.S. believes a limited military campaign in Rafah can take out remaining commanders of the Palestinian militant group. The White House said last week it intended to share with Israeli officials alternatives for eliminating Hamas' remaining battalions in Rafah without a full-scale ground invasion that Washington says would be a "disaster." The threat of such an offensive has increased differences between close allies the United States and Israel, and raised questions about whether the U.S. might restrict military aid if Netanyahu defies Biden and presses ahead anyway. Biden, running for re-election in November, faces pressure not just from America's allies but from a growing number of fellow Democrats to rein in the Israeli military response in Gaza. Biden’s decision to abstain at the U.N., coming after months of mostly adhering to longtime U.S. policy of shielding Israel at the world body, appeared to reflect growing U.S. frustration with the Israeli leader. Netanyahu issued a stinging rebuke, calling the U.S. move a "clear retreat" from its previous position and would hurt Israel's war efforts and negotiations to free more than 130 hostages still held in Gaza. U.S. officials said at the time that the Biden administration was perplexed by Netanyahu's decision and considered it an overreaction, insisting there had been no change in policy.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sought to shutter Al Jazeera in Israel for some time [Reuters]

Published On 1 Apr 2024

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has revived a push to close down Al Jazeera in Israel.

The Israeli leader demanded on Monday that his coalition government prepare to push legislation through the Knesset that would allow the prime minister to shut down foreign news networks.

Netanyahu, who has long sought to shutter broadcasts from the Qatari-based media outlet, promised to “immediately act to close Al Jazeera” following the law’s adoption, according to a statement from his Likud party.

The bill, passed in a first reading in February, would give the prime minister and the communications minister the authority to order the closure of foreign networks operating in Israel and confiscate their equipment if it is believed that they pose “harm to the state’s security”.

The revived push to shut the station comes as Netanyahu faces huge protests against his handling of Israel’s war with Hamas.

More to come.

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