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US asked Qatar to tone down Al Jazeera's coverage of Israel’s Gaza war: Report

Thursday, 26 October 2023 6:43 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 26 October 2023 7:47 AM ]

Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (R) meets US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Doha on October 13, 2023. (Photo by AP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has reportedly called on Qatar to tone down the state-owned Al Jazeera TV channel’s coverage of the Israeli bombing campaign on the besieged Gaza Strip.

Blinken told a group of American Jewish community leaders during a Monday meeting that he had made the request during recent talks with Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha, the Axios news site reported.

Citing three people who attended Monday’s meeting, the report said the plea was one of several Blinken made for Qatar to change its public posture toward the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas.

One of the sources quoted Blinken as saying that he had asked the Qataris to "turn down the volume on Al Jazeera's coverage because it is full of anti-Israel incitement.”

Blinken seemed to be talking about Al Jazeera Arabic, not Al Jazeera English, according to the report.

Back on October 13, Blinken, speaking alongside Sheikh Mohammed in Doha, had said “there can be no more business as usual with Hamas.”

Qatar, home to some Hamas leaders, is currently engaged in mediating efforts between Israel and the resistance group.

Earlier this week, Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani urged the international community not to grant Israel “an unconditional green light and unrestricted authorization to kill” Palestinians.