Following its passage, the Israeli prime minister expressed his intention to immediately take action to shut down Al Jazeera, accusing the network of harming Israel’s security.
The Israeli Parliament, known as the Knesset, has approved a new law, granting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the power to ban foreign media outlets if they are deemed to be detrimental to Israel’s security.
The law, which was dubbed the ‘Al-Jazeera Law’, passed on Monday with a majority of 70 votes to 10.
Netanyahu, through his Likud party, pushed for the approval of this norm during a plenary session of the Knesset.
Following its passage, the Israeli prime minister expressed his intention to immediately take action to shut down Al Jazeera, accusing the network of harming Israel’s security and inciting violence against its soldiers.
“Al-Jazeera harmed Israel’s security, actively participated in the October 7 massacre, and incited against IDF soldiers. It is time to remove the shofar of Hamas from our country,” Netanyahu wrote on his X account, commenting the law.
“The terrorist channel Al Jazeera will no longer broadcast from Israel. I intend to act immediately in accordance with the new law to stop the channel’s activity,” he added.
“I welcome the law promoted by Communications Minister Shlomo Karai with the support of coalition members led by coalition chairman Ofir Katz,” the prime minister also wrote.
אל ג׳זירה פגעו בביטחון ישראל, השתתפו באופן פעיל בטבח ה-7 באוקטובר, והסיתו נגד חיילי צה״ל. הגיע הזמן לסלק את השופר של החמאס מהמדינה שלנו.
ערוץ הטרור אל ג׳זירה לא ישדר יותר מישראל. בכוונתי לפעול מיידית בהתאם לחוק החדש כדי לעצור את פעילות הערוץ.
אני מברך על החוק שקידם שר התקשורת…
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) April 1, 2024
The law, however, faced criticism from within Likud itself.
Some party members, like Israeli lawmaker Amit Halevy, argued that the norm is ineffective and could cause more harm, as it may not prevent Al Jazeera’s audience from accessing its content.
Critics, including the Association for Civil Rights in Israel and international organizations like the United Nations and Human Rights Watch, condemned the law as a restriction on freedom of expression.
Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, commented on Netanyahu’s intention to close Al Jazeera’s office in Israel by saying, “This is as worrying as any restriction on journalists’ right to work.”
Less than an hour ago, the Israe*i Knesset passed a law paving the way to ban Al Jazeera and other foreign news networks deemed a “security risk” pic.twitter.com/cuOEiUCjCf
— WearThePeace (@WearThePeaceCo) April 1, 2024
The Financial Times quoted Omar Shaker, an expert with Human Rights Watch, as saying that the law is a worrying escalation in Israel’s efforts to suppress critics of violations.
The law is part of a broader trend of tightening controls on foreign media in Israel. In February, the Knesset approved a draft law granting the Minister of Communications powers to prevent foreign broadcasters from harming security and to close the offices of foreign media channels in Israel.
This move has raised concerns about the erosion of press freedom and access to information in the country.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
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