Al Jazeera controversies and criticism a week of the start of the rebellion in Libya against the Libyan Government, Al Jazeera started using the rebels' tricolor flag to mark its coverage. Qatar's emir appeared on Al Jazeera and urged that military intervention in Libya was necessary. Al Jazeera's journalists were criticized for not challenging the emir over his position. Although Al Jazeera reported on 22 February 2011 that Libya's government carried out airstrikes on Benghazi and Tripoli, observers concluded that the airstrikes did not take place. Saudi Arabia decided to ban Al-Jazeera and another Qatari website after Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani stated
Al Jazeera controversies and criticism network with fueling anti-Coalition hostilities. Al Jazeera spokesman Jihad Ballout said: "It's regrettable and we believe it's not justifiable. This latest decision runs contrary to all the promises made by Iraqi authorities concerning freedom of expression and freedom of the press," and Al Jazeera vowed to continue its reporting from inside Iraq. News photographs showed United States and Iraqi military personnel working together to close the office. Initially closed by a one-month ban, the shutdown was extended indefinitely in September 2004, and the offices were sealed, drawing condemnation from international journalists. In April 2013, Iraq banned Al Jazeera along with