Al Jazeera English is closing its bureau in Beijing after Chinese authorities refused to renew a correspondent’s press credentials and visa. The correspondent, Melissa Chan, has filed more than 400 reports for the network in China since 2007.

From Al Jazeera English:

“Salah Negm, director of news at Al Jazeera English said: We’ve been doing a first class job at covering all stories in China.Our editorial DNA includes covering all stories from all sides. We constantly cover the voice of the voiceless and sometimes that calls for tough news coverage from anywhere in world. We hope China appreciates the integrity of our news coverage and our journalism. We value this journalist integrity in our coverage of all countries in the world.

We are committed to our coverage of China. Just as China news services cover the world freely we would expect that same freedom in China for any Al Jazeera journalist. Al Jazeera Media Network will continue to work with the Chinese authorities in order to reopen our Beijing bureau.”

Bob Dietz of the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said Chan’s case, the first expulsion of a journalist since 1998, “marks a real deterioration in China’s media environment and sends a message that international coverage is unwanted”