Al Jazeera denounced the closure of its bureau, saying the move was designed to stifle free reporting 
 
 The Egyptian authorities are revoking the Al Jazeera Network's licence to broadcast from the country, and will be shutting down its bureau office in Cairo, state television has said. 
 
 "The information minister [Anas al-Fikki] ordered ... suspension of operations of Al Jazeera, cancelling of its licences and withdrawing accreditation to all its staff as of today," a statement on the official Mena news agency said on Sunday. 
 
 In a statement, Al Jazeera said it strongly denounces and condemns the closure of its bureau in Cairo by the Egyptian government. The network received notification from the Egyptian authorities on Sunday morning. 
 
 
 
 "Al Jazeera has received widespread global acclaim for their coverage on the ground across the length and breadth of Egypt," the statement said. 
 
 
 
 An Al Jazeera spokesman said that the company would continue its strong coverage regardless. 
 
 'Designed to stifle' 
 
 
 
 "Al Jazeera sees this as an act designed to stifle and repress the freedom of reporting by the network and its journalists," the statement said. 
 
 "In this time of deep turmoil and unrest in Egyptian society it is imperative that voices from all sides be heard; the closing of our bureau by the Egyptian government is aimed at censoring and silencing the voices of the Egyptian people. 
 
 
 
 "Al Jazeera assures its audiences in Egypt and across the world that it will continue its in-depth and comprehensive reporting on the events unfolding in Egypt. 
 
 "Al Jazeera journalists have brought unparallelled reporting from the ground from across Egypt in the face of great danger and extraordinary circumstances. Al Jazeera Network is appalled at this latest attack by the Egyptian regime to strike at its freedom to report independently on the unprecedented events in Egypt." 
 
 As their signals have been taken off Nilesat, our Arabic sister channels are now broadcasting on the following new frequencies: 
 
 1) New frequency for AJA & AJM on Nilesat 7W: 
 
 10949 vertical (new) 
 
 SR: 27.500 Msps 
 
 FEC: 3/4 
 
 2) New frequency for AJA & AJM on Arabsat 26E: 
 
 11585 vertical (new) 
 
 SR: 27.500 Msps 
 
 FEC: 3/4 
 
 3) Arabic and Mubasher on Hotbird: 
 
 12111 MHz Vertical (Old) 
 
 SR: 27.500 Msps 
 
 FEC: 3/4 
 
 4) Arabic and Mubasher on Arabsat Badr4 (Old): 
 
 12034 MHz Horizontal 
 
 SR: 27.500 
 
 FEC: 3/4 
 
 
 
 5) Arabic and Mubasher on Arabsat Badr4 (Old): 
 
 11996 MHz Horizontal 
 
 SR: 27.500 
 
 FEC: 3/4 

 The pan-Arab broadcaster Al-Jazeera said Sunday that Egyptian authorities ordered the closure of its Cairo news hub overseeing coverage of the country's massive street protests, denouncing the move as an attempt to "stifle and repress" open reporting. 
 
 Egyptians watch as smoke billows from the Arcadia shopping center, that was looted, damaged and set on fire by people in Cairo, Egypt, Sunday, Jan. 30, 2011. Egyptians woke up to a dawn of uncertainty... (Associated Press) 
 
 Egyptian men sit as they try to protect from looting the Arcadia shopping center, that was already partially looted, damaged and set on fire by people in Cairo, Egypt, Sunday, Jan. 30, 2011. Cairo residents... (Associated Press) 
 
 In this photo released by China's Xinhua news agency, demonstrators gather near the main Tahrir Square in Cairo, Egypt, on Saturday Jan. 29, 2011. Thousands of anti-government protesters have returned... (Associated Press) 
 
 An Egyptian man uses his mobile phone to take a picture of the Arcadia shopping center, that was looted, damaged and set on fire by people in Cairo, Egypt, Sunday Jan. 30, 2011. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) (Associated Press) 
 
 The Qatar-based network has given nearly round-the-clock coverage to the unprecedented uprising against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and had faced criticism by some government supporters and other Arab leaders as a forum to inspire more unrest. 
 
 Al-Jazeera's flagship Arabic channel has faced numerous bans and backlash across the Arab world, including bitter complains this month from the Palestinian Authority over allegations that its reporting favored rival Hamas over leaked documents about peace talks with Israel. Al-Jazeera also broadcasts in English. 
 
 But the ban by Egyptian official comes amid one of the most pivotal Arab political showdowns in decades and a possible watershed moment for Arab networks expanding their presence on the web and social media. The blanket coverage offers another example of how border-spanning outlets such as Al-Jazeera and the worldwide reach of the Internet have destroyed the once-unchallenged media control of governments. 
 
 Al-Jazeera called the Egyptian ban "an act designed to stifle and repress the freedom of reporting by the network and its journalists." 
 
 "In this time of deep turmoil and unrest in Egyptian society, it is imperative that voices from all sides be heard," said the statement from its headquarters in Qatar's capital Doha. "The closing of our bureau by the Egyptian government is aimed at censoring and silencing the voices of the Egyptian people." 
 
 The network promised to continue its coverage, but it was unclear in what form. It said Al-Jazeera journalists would provide updates on Twitter. The network had previously posted clips from broadcasts on YouTube, but there were no new items after the ban was imposed. 
 
 The station broadcast video clips tagged as "live" showing crowds in Cairo's central Tahrir Square, but they appeared to be from fixed rooftop cameras and were not accompanied by reports directly from Egypt. It was unclear whether Egypt's ban would permit such shots. 
 
 It also was not immediately clear whether Egypt's ban would extend to other Arab broadcasters, such as Dubai-based Al-Arabiya. 
 
 In contrast, at least one Egyptian state TV channel late Saturday and early Sunday started broadcasting soothing pharaonic pictures, shots of the tranquil Nile River and greenery after ending a newscast in which they listed the areas where thugs were active in Cairo. 
 
 Egypt has moved aggressively to try to control mobile phones and the web since the protests swelled late last week _ inspired by the uprising by drove Tunisia's long-ruling leader from power. Egyptian authorities cut mobile phones and web links in tactics that mirrored the information choke-hold imposed by Iran's security forces in the chaos after last year's disputed elections. 
 
 Anti-government riots also have spread to Yemen, where President Ali Abdullah Saleh claimed the tone of Al-Jazeera's coverage incited "unrest, violence and sabotage in the Arab countries." 
 
 Al-Jazeera has been frequently at odds with authorities in the Middle East, previously facing bans or restrictions in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iraq. In December, its offices where closed in Kuwait after it broadcast a clash between security forces and opposition groups. 
 
 The Qatari government bankrolled Al-Jazeera when it launched in 1996 and is believed to still fund the station, but it operates with considerable editorial freedom compared with other government-run media outlets in the Arab world. 
 
 The network is part of a wider effort by Qatar's emir, Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, to widen the Gulf nation's political and cultural reach. Qatar has taken a lead on several difficult regional issues, including peace talks for Sudan's Darfur region, and was selected to host the 2022 World Cup. 
 
 But some media observers note that Al-Jazeera's enthusiastic coverage of the protesters leave it exposed to questions about its leanings. 
 
 "Al-Jazeera actually spun these protests as noble efforts worthy of international support and duplication," said Philip Howard, a University of Washington professor who follows media trends in the Muslim World. "I think their coverage of every dictator with 30-plus years of rule has been consistently unflattering." 
 
 On Al-Jazeera's homepage, comments about the reporting ban by Egypt spanned from outrage to quips that Al-Jazeera got what it deserved. 
 
 "We need 100 Al-Jazeeras to expose the practices of government," wrote one post without giving a home country. 
 
 Another from Egypt attacked Al-Jazeera and asked: "Do you want to control the decisions of the nations? You criticize Kuwait, Morocco, Egypt and other Arab countries except Qatar." 
 
 Some of the harshest comments recently against Al-Jazeera have come from supporters of Palestinian Mahmoud Abbas, who claim that leaked documents about Middle East peace talks sought to undercut Abbas and favor his rival Hamas. 
 
 In pro-Abbas marches in the West Bank last week, some raised home-made Israeli flags with the Star of David was replaced by the Al-Jazeera logo. Others chanted "Jazeera, Mossad" _ claiming that Al-Jazeera was playing into Israel's hands by trying to weaken Abbas. 
 
 Nashat Aqtash, media professor at the West Bank's Bir Zeit University, called Al-Jazeera a "very lucrative political investment" for tiny Qatar." 
 
 "`Al-Jazeera might have a political agenda, but it tackled the most sensitive issues for the Arab world and became No. 1 simply because we lack media in the Arab world," Aqtash said. "Media in the Arab World is still mostly government- and partisan-driven media, not sources of information." 
 
 ___ 
 
 Associated Press writer Mohammed Daraghmeh in Ramallah, West Bank, contributed to this report.
– Egypt isn't messing around with al-Jazeera anymore, announcing on state-run television today that it's closing the network's Cairo bureau and revoking its license to broadcast from the country. Al-Jazeera has pledged to continue its coverage, but it's unclear what form that will take, notes AP. "The information minister ordered ... suspension of operations of al-Jazeera, canceling of its licenses and withdrawing accreditation to all its staff as of today," the official Mena news agency said. "Al-Jazeera has received widespread global acclaim for their coverage on the ground across the length and breadth of Egypt," countered a statement from the network, calling the move "designed to stifle and repress the freedom of reporting by the network and its journalists." Click here and here to read more about al-Jazeera's coverage of the Egyptian crisis. Its round-the-clock live feed has been running from here.