The Israeli authorities confiscated camera equipment belonging to the Associated Press on Tuesday, before reversing course in the face of widespread condemnation from media groups and criticism even from its closest ally, the United States.

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi said in a statement he had ordered officials to cancel the original decision and return the confiscated equipment, pending a decision by the Ministry of Defence, which he said wished to examine the issue.

The Israeli Communications Ministry had earlier accused the AP of breaking the law by providing a live broadcast to Al Jazeera, which it placed under a temporary ban earlier this month, accusing it of endangering national security.

The agency said it was ordered to shut down a live feed showing a view into Gaza from the Israeli town of Sderot, saying this was not based on content but "an abusive use by the Israeli government of the country's new foreign broadcaster law".

"The Associated Press decries in the strongest terms the actions of the Israeli government to shut down our longstanding live feed showing a view into Gaza and seize AP equipment," AP spokesperson Lauren Easton said.

The media law, passed in April, allows the government to order foreign broadcasters to temporarily cease operations on grounds of national security.

The White House, which has supported Israel in the war, said the incident was concerning and journalists had the right to do their jobs.

US President Joe Biden's administration asked senior Israeli officials to reverse course as soon as it learned of the reports, White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said.

"The free press is an essential pillar of democracy and members of the media, including AP, do vital work that must be respected," Watson said in a statement.

Media rights groups blasted the move, which Reporters Without Borders called "outrageous censorship." The incident is the latest in a fraught series of confrontations between media groups and the Israeli government since the start of the war in Gaza last year.

AP said it had complied with military censorship rules that prohibit broadcasts of details like troop movements that could endanger soldiers. It said the live shot had generally shown smoke rising over Gaza.  Like AP, Reuters also provides a live feed from positions around Gaza to clients around the world, including Al-Jazeera.

When Israel closed its operations in May, Al-Jazeera called the accusation that it threatened Israeli security a "dangerous and ridiculous lie". It had no immediate comment when asked about the AP incident on Tuesday.

Spokespeople for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

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As part of Israel's move to shut down Al Jazeera's operations in the country, video equipment was seized today (Tuesday) from the offices of the Associated Press news agency in the Southern city of Sderot. According to the Ministry of Communications, the news agency facilitated broadcasting opportunities from the Gaza border for Al Jazeera. 

During the raid on the broadcast offices in Sderot, inspectors from the Communications Ministry confiscated a camera that was live-streaming northern Gaza and IDF forces. Among the items seized were also a tripod, a wireless modem providing live broadcast capabilities, and two microphones.

Last week, a warning was sent to the agency, demanding they cease providing broadcasts to the Al Jazeera channel. However, AP decided to continue providing them with the footage.

החרמת הציוד של AP, סוכנות הידיעות הגדולה בעולם, בידי אנשיו של שלמה קרעי, היא מעשה של טירוף. זה לא אל ג'זירה, זה כלי תקשורת אמריקאי שזכה ב-53 פרסי פוליצר.

הממשלה הזו מתנהגת כאילו החליטה לוודא בכל מחיר שישראל תנודה בכל העולם. הם השתגעו.

— יאיר לפיד - Yair Lapid (@yairlapid) May 21, 2024

Following these events, AP stated that the Qatari satellite channel is among thousands of clients that receive live video feeds from the organization, and decried "in the strongest terms the actions of the Israeli government to shut down our longstanding live feed showing a view into Gaza and seize AP equipment." 

Lauren Easton, vice president of corporate communications at the news organization also said "The shutdown was not based on the content of the feed but rather an abusive use by the Israeli government of the country's new foreign broadcaster law. We urge the Israeli authorities to return our equipment and enable us to reinstate our live feed immediately so we can continue to provide this important visual journalism to thousands of media outlets around the world."

The Communications Ministry stated that "Photographers from the AP news agency regularly filmed the Gaza area from a balcony in Sderot, including focusing on the activities and positions of IDF soldiers. Despite Communications Ministry inspectors warning them that they were violating the law and must disconnect Al Jazeera from receiving their content and not transmit to them, they continued to do so."

"The Israeli government has determined that it will not allow the Hamas-supporting terrorist channel Al Jazeera to broadcast from Israel. The law and regulations make no distinction between Al Jazeera itself or suppliers that transfer material to it from Israel."

The issue drew a response from the White House, calling the incident "concerning." Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also added the White House believes journalists have the ability and right to do their jobs. 

Israel's opposition leader, Yair Lapid, called the move "an act of madness" in his recent post on X. "This is not Al Jazeera. This is an American news outlet," he said. "This government acts as if it has decided to make sure at any cost that Israel will be shunned all over the world." 

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi addressed Lapid's comment, and said he should be "ashamed." He added, "Let me remind you that the laws and regulations unanimously passed by the government, with full backing from all security forces, require confiscating any equipment used to provide content to Al Jazeera, regardless of the individual or corporation involved. This is especially true in this case, in which AP staff were explicitly warned last week and still refused to stop servicing this terror-supporting channel. We will continue to take decisive action against anyone who tries to undermine our soldiers and the state's security, whether you approve or not."

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The Israeli military said Saturday that three rockets were launched from Syria toward Israeli territory, a rare attack from the country's northeastern neighbor that comes after days of escalating violence on multiple fronts.

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There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the rocket launches, which caused no damage or casualties. Only one rocket managed to cross into Israeli territory and landed in a field in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights.

Also on Saturday, Israeli security forces shot and killed a 20-year-old Palestinian terrorist. The Israeli military said it opened fire at Palestinians hurling stones and explosive devices at troops. The Palestinian Health Ministry identified the Palestinian killed in the West Bank town of Azzun as Ayed Salim.

The unusual rocket fire from Syria comes against the backdrop of soaring Israeli-Palestinian tensions touched off by rioters in the Al-Aqsa Mosque, who have been disrupting the peace on Temple Mount by hurling rocks and firing fireworks at police. Israeli efforts to maintain calm and arrest the violent provocateurs prompted terrorists in Lebanon – as well as Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip – to fire a heavy barrage of rockets into Israel. In retaliation, Israeli warplanes struck sites linked to the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza and southern Lebanon.

Late Saturday, a few hundred Palestinian worshippers barricaded themselves in the mosque – which sits on a hilltop in the heart of Jerusalem's Old City sacred to both Muslims and Jews. Israeli police efforts to evict the worshippers locked in the mosque overnight with stockpiled firecrackers and stones spiraled into unrest in the holy site earlier this week.

In light of the weekend escalation, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu invited Opposition Leader Yair Lapid to brief him on the situation after the latter vowed to support the government on security matters in a show of rare unity on both sides.

Capping the latest violence, a shooting Friday in the West Bank and an alleged car-ramming in Tel Aviv killed two British-Israelis and an Italian tourist.

The escalation prompted Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to extend a closure barring entrance to Israel for Palestinians from the  West Bank and Gaza Strip for the duration of the Jewish holiday of Passover, while police beefed up forces in Jerusalem on the eve of sensitive religious celebrations.

The moves come at a time of heightened religious fervor – with Ramadan coinciding with Passover and Easter celebrations. Jerusalem's Old City, home to key Jewish, Muslim, and Christian holy sites, has been teeming with visitors and religious pilgrims from around the world.

Gallant said that a closure imposed last Wednesday, on the eve of Passover, would remain in effect until the holiday ends on Wednesday night. The order prevents Palestinians from entering Israel for work or to pray in Jerusalem this week, though mass prayers were permitted at the Al-Aqsa Mosque on Friday. Gallant also ordered the Israeli military to be prepared to assist Israeli police. The army later announced that it was deploying additional troops around Jerusalem and in the West Bank.

Over 2,000 police were expected to be deployed in Jerusalem on Sunday – when tens of thousands of Jews are expected to gather at the Western Wall for the special Passover priestly blessing. The Western Wall is the holiest site where Jews can pray and sits next to the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, where large crowds gather each day for prayers during Ramadan.

Jerusalem police chief Doron Turgeman met with his commanders on Saturday for a security assessment. He accused the Hamas group, which rules the Gaza Strip, of trying to incite violence ahead of Sunday's priestly blessing with false claims that Jews planned to storm the mosque.

"We will allow the freedom of worship and we will allow the arrival of Muslims to pray," he said, adding that police "will act with determination and sensitivity" to ensure that all faiths can celebrate safely.

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Fernanda Quiroga still remembers how Lionel Messi played soccer in what were then dirt roads around their working class neighborhood in Rosario, Argentina's third-largest city.

"(Messi) was always kicking something, a ball, a bottle cap," said Quiroga, who at 35 is the same age as the captain of Argentina's national soccer team. "The memory I have of him because he lived right in front of my house, is going to buy sweet pastries at his grandmother's around the block and he was always kicking something."

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Excitement for Sunday's World Cup final, when Argentina will face defending champion France in Qatar, is rising fast and anxiety is running particularly high in Messi's hometown as many are hoping this will be the year when Messi finally wins the one major trophy that has been missing from his illustrious career.

"Even though it pains us all, it's been said this is Leo's last World Cup, so we're all hoping he wins it, I think more for him than for the national team itself," Quiroga said. "I think what weighs more this time around is that we want him to get it because he has generated so much love and respect."

After beating Croatia in the semifinals Tuesday, Messi said Sunday's match would likely be his last in a World Cup.

The neighborhood popularly known as La Bajada has turned into a sort of altar for Messi with murals and graffiti that praise the soccer star.

"From another galaxy and from my neighborhood," reads graffiti that is seemingly ubiquitous in the area.

A large mural of Messi looking up at the sky is painted on the side of his old house that still belongs to his family.

"The little guy was very spicy. If he got mad, he grabbed the ball and took it away," said Marcelo Almada, a 37-year-old construction worker who played soccer with Messi in the streets around the neighborhood where he still lives. "He didn't like to lose … but he was a very good kid."

With the World Cup, "there has been an explosion in the neighborhood," where "we're all like brothers," he added, noting that after every Argentina victory people celebrate in the streets until the early hours of the morning.

The neighborhood has also turned into a place of pilgrimage, with fans from all over the world coming to visit Messi's old house and the small soccer field in the corner where he started to learn the skills that would eventually turn him into an all-time great.

"I've been a fan of Barcelona and Messi since I was a little boy and … my dream is to see Messi win (the World Cup)," said 23-year-old Niv Reznik, an Israeli who traveled to Argentina with a group of friends to watch the tournament in the homeland of the soccer star who played 17 seasons with Barcelona.

When Reznik and his friends got to Messi's house, one of them kneeled and waved his hands in ovation.

A few blocks away, another person who is hoping for a Messi victory is 55-year-old Andrea Liliana Sosa, who was Messi's math and science teacher in fifth and sixth grade.

"He was a quiet and dutiful student, responsible with what he had to do for school and well loved by his classmates … especially during the breaks to play ball," Sosa said in one of the classrooms of the school that has chipped paint across many of its walls. "He was very focused on soccer.

"(A victory Sunday) would be like the cherry that he's missing, so let's hope he makes it, but he has done enough already to be recognized and loved by everyone," she added.

School children are living the World Cup "with a beautiful passion" and want Argentina to win "for Messi," said Milena Fernández, a 13-year-old student who was standing in front of a large mural of the soccer star on the school's grounds.

Across the street from the school, another large mural of Messi adorns the side of a residential building that has also turned into a place of pilgrimage for fans.

"We've even seen people praying here," said 21-year-old Valentina Rota, who lives in the building. "There's a whole feeling of belonging because he was born around the corner, he's one of us, he's a neighbor."

Messi, and the national team as a whole, have managed to raise the hope and optimism of Argentines in a country that has been stuck in economic doldrums for years with one of the world's highest inflations rates, closing in on almost 100% per year, and where close to four of every 10 people live in poverty.

"Everyone wants Messi to win and that generates a community, a very pleasant feeling that is very infrequent in Argentina, which is always fighting, divided, angry, frustrated," said Diego Schwarzstein, an endocrinologist who treated Messi for growth hormone deficiency until he left for Barcelona at 13 after the European club promised to pay for his costly treatment.

In Rosario, a city marred by drug violence, that feeling seems even more stark.

"You forget a little bit about the murders, the robberies and all other things that are happening," Sosa said. "This distracts us a little bit."

It isn't, of course, just about a distraction. For those who have followed Messi's career from the beginning, a victory Sunday would mean the culmination of lifelong work considering the soccer star himself has talked about the importance of winning a World Cup title.

"Despite the fact that he's now a rock star, has a beautiful family, a gorgeous wife, a bulky bank account and lots of popularity, his path was not covered in rose petals," Dr. Schwarstein said. "Those of us who know that path, and know the importance this Cup has for him, profoundly want him to have it."

In La Bajada, residents are hopeful that if Messi wins on Sunday he will come back to his old home for a visit.

"We all have the dream that he will come back," Quiroga said. "It's a very strong wish, especially for the youngest who've heard that we all know him and they want to meet him, too. There are huge expectations for him to come back and I think that some day it will happen, whether it be now or later. This is his house, his family's house, let's hope it happens."

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Israeli missiles hit targets in southern Syria, killing one soldier and causing extensive damage, Syrian media reported early Thursday.

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A Syrian military source told state-run SANA news agency that the attack took place around 1 a.m., when planes came from the Golan Heights and targeted areas near Damascus. He did not specify what was targeted.

The source also said that several of the missiles were shot down by Syrian missile defense systems. Residents in the area reported hearing explosions.

Israel made no comment on the strike, as it rarely responds to reports of attacks north of its borders. Leaders in the Jewish state, both military and political, have stated that Israel will not tolerate Iran's presence in Syria.

Last week, Syria's military claimed Israeli warplanes fired missiles on the port of the coastal city of Latakia. It was a rare attack on the port, a vital facility where much of Syria's imports are brought into the war-torn country. According to Israel's Kan 11 News, weapons earmarked for Hezbollah were being stored in the containers.

Meanwhile, Intelligence Minister Elazar Stern said on Tuesday that  Syria cannot be allowed to obtain chemical weapons, after a report emerged that Israel targeted the country's chemical weapons facilities.

In an interview with Army Radio,  Stern would not directly comment on the report in the Washington Post that said that Israel struck Syria on two occasions – once this year and once last year – in a bid to block attempts to rebuild its chemical weapons stockpile. But Stern, a retired military general, hinted that Israel could not accept such weapons in the hands of its enemy to the north.

"We have a neighbor who has already proved that it doesn't hesitate to use chemical weapons even against its own people," he said. Syrian President Bashas "Assad must not have chemical weapons."

i24NEWS contributed to this report.

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