would be handled so lightly as to not offend the ruling officials. Al Jazeera, however, provided unprecedented bold platforms for open discussions beyond the once prevailing government censor- ship. The media and political shock caused by Al Jazeera has been both impactful and serious, but it was more annoying than threat- ening. During the early days of the channel’s operations, some Arab governments were content with putting hurdles in the way of its correspondents or banning it altogether from working in their countries. Closures and bans came in 1998 when Jordan shut down Al Jazeera’s office in Amman, followed by Kuwait in 1999. In October 2000, the Moroccan authorities ordered Al Jazeera’s cor- respondent to stop dealing with the channel (1) . The year 2001 was decisive in terms of international relations and world order after 9/11. attacks resulted in a wave of political and security shocks that continued to reverberate for decades to come. The immediate response to 9/11 was an American-led inva- sion of Afghanistan. Later, the U.S. proceeded with severe mili- tary and political operations that heavily affected the Arab region. A strategic domino effect ensued following the American-Anglo invasion of Iraq in March 2003. These events offered Al Jazeera a real opportunity to expand its professional success through unpar- alleled coverage. But its ensuing worldwide success extended the sense of anger against Al Jazeera from Arab leaders and the U.S. administration. The now hardened stance from the U.S. against the channel encouraged Arab governments to feel at ease and shut down more of its offices, ban its coverage, or clamp down on it. These aggressive practices culminated in detaining and physically abusing Al Jazeera’s correspondents. In November 2001, the U.S. military carried out air strikes against Al Jazeera’s office in Kabul. Tayseer Allouni, the chan- nel’s correspondent, and the crew were not injured and managed to leave Afghanistan safely, after it was believed they would be
(1) Ibid.
268
EN2.indd 268
20/02/2022 4:14 PM
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter