Al Jazeera TV network accuses Egypt authorities of intimidation against staff

PanARMENIAN.Net - The pan-Arab Al Jazeera television network accused Egyptian authorities on Tuesday, July 23 of a sustained campaign of intimidation against its staff, rejecting charges of pro-Islamist bias in its reporting on the crisis in Egypt, Reuters said.

Hours after the Egyptian military ousted Islamist President Mohamed Mursi on July 3, security forces raided the Cairo offices of Al Jazeera's Egyptian news channel, which military sources accused at the time of broadcasting "incitement".

Based in Qatar, a Gulf Arab state viewed as sympathetic to Mursi's Muslim Brotherhood, Al Jazeera had been criticized by many Egyptians for its perceived bias in covering their country.

Al Jazeera said authorities had been "tightening its grip on the freedom of al Jazeera's staff" for the past three weeks.

Al Jazeera said in a statement the Egyptian authorities had filed a law suit saying it had stolen two transmission feeds from state television and used them to broadcast protests at a square where Mursi supporters have been camped since his ouster.

The television station, which rose to prominence by its lively coverage of a region once dominated by state media, also said its staff were being prevented from covering official news conferences and that they were receiving numerous threats.

Mursi's downfall marked a recalibration of power among Gulf Arab states which, with the notable exception of Qatar, had feared the Brotherhood would use its domination of Egypt to push a radical, Islamist agenda in their own backyard.