Al Jazeera office raided by Israeli forces following 'criminal' decision to ban network

 Israeli police raided a Jerusalem hotel room used by Al Jazeera as its de facto office on Sunday following a government decision to shut down the Qatari-owned TV station's local operations.

Video circulated online showed plainclothes officers dismantling camera equipment in a hotel room in East Jerusalem.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet shut down the network for as long as the war in Gaza continues, saying that the television network "threatens national security".

Al Jazeera condemned the "criminal" move by Netanyahu's government, which voted unanimously to shut it down over its coverage of the Gaza war. Hours later it went off-air.

Israeli occupying forces raid the site of Al Jazeera's team at the Ambassador Hotel in Sheikh Jarrah, confiscating journalistic equipment. pic.twitter.com/YtTRsA6Kkd

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) May 5, 2024

"We condemn and denounce this criminal act by Israel that violates the human right to access information," the channel said in a statement, adding that it would take legal action.

The network said it would "pursue all available legal channels through international legal institutions in its quest to protect both its rights and journalists, as well as the public's right to information".

"Israel's ongoing suppression of the free press, seen as an effort to conceal its actions in the Gaza Strip, stands in contravention of international and humanitarian law," the broadcaster said.

"Israel's direct targeting and killing of journalists, arrests, intimidation and threats will not deter Al Jazeera from its commitment to cover," it added.

Since the start of Israel's war on Gaza on October 7, Al Jazeera has aired continuous on-the-ground reporting on the effects of Israel's military operation in the besieged enclave, for which Tel Aviv faces charges of genocide over.

The network's office in Gaza has been bombed in the conflict and two of its correspondents have been killed.

Israel's Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi said he had issued the order to shutter the channel, confiscate equipment and restrict broadcasting to Al Jazeera's websites in a separate joint statement with Netanyahu.

Al Jazeera said its crew accreditations had been withdrawn and Israel had banned media service providers from transmitting its broadcasts