This article is more than 11 years old

This article is more than 11 years old

The Palestinian Authority said today it was suspending the West Bank operations of al-Jazeera, alleging incitement and unbalanced reporting by the Arab news station from the Palestinian territories.

A Palestinian official says the decision was taken by President Mahmoud Abbas who was outraged by an al-Jazeera talkshow, broadcast yesterday, that dealt with harsh accusations against PA leader by a long-time rival in his Fatah movement. The rival, Farouk Kaddoumi, claimed – without presenting evidence – that Abbas had a role in the 2004 death of his predecessor, Yasser Arafat.

The official did not give his name because he was not authorised to speak to the media.

The information ministry accused the popular Arab satellite TV station of incitement and unbalanced reporting from the Palestinian territories, but did not provide details about the alleged incitement.

Abbas's aides have long alleged that the Qatar-based station, which is widely watched in the Palestinian territories, has been siding with the Islamist movement Hamas in the bitter Palestinian power struggle.

Hamas seized Gaza by force in 2007, ousting forces loyal to Abbas and leaving the president in control only of the West Bank. Since then, Abbas has increasingly clamped down on Hamas in the West Bank.

A Hamas spokesman, Fawzi Barhoum, accused the West Bank government of trying to silence the media and "cover up what is going on in the West Bank", a reference to Abbas's crackdown on the Palestinian Islamist group. In Gaza, Hamas has carried out similar raids, making arrests and shutting down Abbas-linked media outlets.

In a statement, the information ministry in the West Bank said it was suing al-Jazeera, and that the station's operations would be suspended until a court has ruled. The statement also said the ministry took particular issue with an al-Jazeera broadcast, but provided no details.

Representatives of the news network could not immediately be reached for comment.

The information ministry did not say whether al-Jazeera's Ramallah office would be shut down, although employees could be seen collecting their belongings shortly after the announcement was made.

The network's Arabic and English channels are bankrolled by the ruling family of Qatar, which also hosts the US military's Middle East headquarters.

Al-Jazeera was often the target of criticism from George Bush's administration, which called it biased against the US. But it has also been lambasted by many governments in the Middle East for its often-critical coverage of the region.