Al Jazeera controversies and criticism engaging in propaganda on behalf of terrorists. Al Jazeera countered that it was merely making information available without comment, and several western television channels later followed suit in broadcasting portions of the tapes. At a press conference on 3 October 2001, Colin Powell tried to persuade the emir of Qatar to shut down Al Jazeera. On 13 November 2001, during the War in Afghanistan, a U.S. missile strike destroyed Al Jazeera's office in Kabul. There were no casualties. When Al Jazeera reported events featuring very graphic footage from inside Iraq, Al Jazeera was described as anti-American and as inciting violence
Al Jazeera America at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time on that date, with an hour-long preview special entitled "This is Al Jazeera". News coverage began immediately afterward at 4:00 p.m. Al Jazeera America's website launched on August 8, 2013. On January 14, 2016, the Al Jazeera Media Network announced that it would shut down Al Jazeera America's cable TV and digital operations on April 30, 2016, citing plummeting oil prices and the highly competitive nature of the American media market. It was also reported that this closure would lead to the loss of about 700 jobs. During its two-year history, Al Jazeera America won