Israel moves to permanently ban Al Jazeera

Knesset approves first reading of bill which would make permanent the government’s ability to close hostile foreign media outlets and remove judicial oversight over such bans.

By World Israel News Staff

The Knesset voted on Monday to approve the first reading of a bill which would significantly increase the Israeli government’s ability to ban foreign media outlets deemed to be hostile towards the State of Israel.

The bill, proposed by Likud MK Ariel Kallner, passed by a vote of 50 to 41, sending it to the Knesset’s National Security Committee, which will deliberate on the legislation before sending it to the plenum for its second and third readings.

If the measure is passed in the two final readings, it will make the ability of the Israeli Communications Minister to ban anti-Israel foreign media outlets permanent, regardless of whether an emergency security situation has been declared.

In April 2024, the Knesset passed legislation granting emergency powers to the Communications Minister, enabling the minister to issue temporary orders against foreign media entities which the ministry deems to be threats to national security.

Since May of last year, the government has used the emergency measure to bar the Qatari network Al Jazeera from broadcasting or maintaining offices in Israel.

Israel has accused the network of serving effectively as a pro-Hamas propaganda outlet, a charge the company has rejected.

However, the limits included in the original law have forced Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi (Likud) to repeatedly renew the ban on Al Jazeera – initially every 45 days, but later once ever 90 – forcing the government to go to court each time to justify the renewal of the ban.

The April 2024 bill was originally set to expire at the end of July 2024, though the Knesset has extended it repeatedly, with the latest vote keeping the law in place through the end of November.

“The temporary measure has expired, and therefore, the new law must be passed quickly,” Karhi told the Knesset ahead of the vote.

In addition to giving the Communications Minister the permanent right to ban foreign media outlets considered hostile towards Israel, the new bill would also terminate the requirement for judicial oversight each time a ban order is issued.

Furthermore, the new bill would allow the minister to order internet providers and cable and satellite companies to block content from banned foreign media outlets.

The left-leaning Association for Civil Rights in Israel castigated the new bill, warning that it was part of a broader campaign by the Netanyahu government to curtail freedom of the press.

The ACRI’s Hagar Shachter called the proposal “unprecedented” in scope and in “the harm it causes to freedom of the press.”