The offices of Palestine TV, a channel funded by the Palestinian Authority, received orders to close and stop its activity for six months. According to AFP, the director of the al-Araz production company that hosts Palestine TV was temporarily arrested and a media worker was summoned for questioning.
Israeli authorities justified the shutdown accusing Palestine TV of producing anti-Israeli content in which the country is presented as "responsible for war crimes and ethnic cleansing". The PJS along with other Palestinian bodies condemned all the closures.
General Secretary of the PJS, Nasser Abu Baker, stated: “We are here today to express our full solidarity with PBC workers and to protest against the Israeli decision. Journalists will never be deterred and will continue to carry out our mission of reporting and telling the truth”.
IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger, said: “The Israeli authorities must reverse their decision and allow Palestinian media and journalists to work freely in Jerusalem. Israeli policies towards Palestinian media and journalists continue to be the main obstacle for the development of press freedom and independent journalism in Palestine”.
