Two years ago the Iraqi government banned the prominent Arabic channel
Al Jazeera from Iraq. The station does, of course, still report news from the country, but it has to rely on Reuters and others; it has no office in Iraq.
Now the Khaleej Times in the UAE reports that another major satellite channel, Al Arabiya, based in Dubai, has been banned, ostensibly for a month. This was announced on Iraqi state television by government spokesperson Ali Dabbagh who said this is "a warning for the unprofessional conduct of their correspondents in covering events in Iraq."
Speaking to Khaleej Times, ... a spokesperson for Al Arabiya said: "This is ... clear evidence of restricting ... freedom of expression. The Iraqi government did not give us any solid reason for their decision to close down our news bureau in Baghdad.
"We were surprised by the move. They did not mention any specific story or incident in which we violated the law. We hope that they ... reconsider their decision and lift the ban before the month expires," he said.
The
Khaleej Times has interviewed people from several Arabic countries. They perceive
a US conspiracy behind the decision to hide the "atrocities taking place in war-ravaged Iraq".
An Iraqi national said that this
shows that the Americans want to keep what goes on in Iraq a hush-hush affair. The Iraqi government seems like just a tool in the hands of Americans.
A Lebanese national said:
I am sure the Iraqi government closed down [the] Al Arabiya office as part of a US plan.... The Arab world definitely [has] lost the chance to get the true stories on [the] Iraq war now.
h/t:
Juan Cole
.