AP decries Israel’s shutdown of its live feed of war-torn Gaza Strip

The Associated Press on Tuesday strongly condemned Israel's seizure of its longstanding live feed showing a view into the Gaza Strip amid a brutal onslaught launched by Tel Aviv on the enclave.

"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," Lauren Easton, vice president of corporate communications at AP, said in a statement.

"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," Easton added.

The AP called on Israel to immediately return its equipment and reinstate its live feed "so we can continue to provide this important visual journalism to thousands of media outlets around the world."

Last month, Israel's parliament passed a law that allows the closure of foreign networks operating in Israel and confiscates their equipment if the defense minister identifies that their broadcast poses "an actual harm to the state's security."

In the first application of the law, Israeli authorities raided the offices of Doha-based Al Jazeera television and confiscated its equipment.