Fatah activists protest outside Al-Jazeera TV station in Ramallah

Some Palestinian protesters carry placards saying news network is "Zionist," after an interviewee badmouthed Yasser Arafat.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
Palestinians protest in Ramallah 370 (photo credit: Michael Omer-Man)
Palestinians protest in Ramallah 370
(photo credit: Michael Omer-Man)
Fatah activists on Wednesday staged a protest outside the office of the Qatari Al Jazeera TV station in Ramallah after an interviewee bad mouthed Yasser Arafat during a heated debate.
The protesters demanded the closure of the bureau and called on Palestinian journalists employed by Al Jazeera to resign.
Palestinian Authority policemen stopped the angry demonstrators from storming the offices of the TV station.
The activists called on the PA leadership and institutions to boycott the station.
Some of the protesters carried placards depicting Al Jazeera as a “Zionist” network.
The protest erupted after a London-based Palestinian political analyst, Ibrahim Hamami, denounced Arafat as a traitor during a debate broadcast on Al Jazeera.
Hamami is known for his staunch criticism of the PA leadership.
The Fatah-affiliated Palestinian Journalists Syndicate strongly condemned Al Jazeera for “smearing the symbol of Palestinian national struggle and the founder of the modern Palestinian revolution.”
The syndicate demanded an apology from Al Jazeera and expressed opposition to any assault on the station or its staff.