Israel Orders 45-Day Closure Of Al Jazeera West Bank Office

Israeli forces have raided the offices of news broadcaster Al Jazeera in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, and ordered it to close for an initial period of 45 days.

Armed and masked Israeli soldiers entered the building early yesterday during a live broadcast.

Viewers watched as the troops handed the closure order to the network’s West Bank bureau chief Walid al-Omari who read it out live on air.

Israel raided Al Jazeera’s offices in Nazareth and occupied East Jerusalem in May having described the Qatarbased broadcaster as a threat to national security, reports the BBC.