Israel’s Communications minister, Shlomo Karhi, announced on ‘X’ that the confiscated equipment will be returned to AP, following condemnation from the US administration. The White House said the incident was concerning and journalists had the right to do their jobs. White House National Security Council spokesperson told the media that the US administration asked senior Israeli officials to reverse course as soon as it learned of the reports.
The sized camera equipment was located in southern Israel and was used to broadcast a general view of northern Gaza, according to AP. Among the customers the news agency has, there is the Qatari channel Al Jazeera, which receives live footage from AP and other news organisations.
On 5 May, the Israeli government banned Al Jazeera in Israel, using its new media law - its offices were raided, its broadcasts were removed from menus of Israeli broadcast providers and its website was blocked. The IFJ condemned the move and warned about the government’s further departure from the respect for a free media expected of a democracy.
The Foreign Press Association, which represents journalists working for international news organisations reporting from Israel, the occupied West Bank and the Gaza strip, said it was “the latest in a series of chilling steps by the Israeli government to stifle the media”.
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said: “The Israeli government quickly reversed its move, after being pressured by the US administration. The US must now apply further pressure on its ally to change its policies towards Palestinian journalists and to lift its ban on foreign media to enter Gaza, which deliberately undermines media freedom and freedom of expression in the country”.