Karhi seeks closure of Lebanese outlet as Al Jazeera stays open
The communications minister enclosed examples of people involved with Al-Mayadeen supporting terrorism, such as glorifying Hamas and exposing IDF positions.
Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi requested to shut down the Lebanese Al-Mayadeen channel's Israeli activities in a letter he sent to National Security Council head Tzachi Hanegbi and Government Secretary Yossi Fuchs.
A copy of the letter was also sent to Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) chief Ronen Bar, Mossad chief David Barnea, Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara, and multiple GPO, communications, and censor officials.
"Al-Mayadeen is a television channel in Arabic, which operates in Lebanon, that is used as a mouthpiece, and even a helping hand, for the Hezbollah terrorist organization and the terrorist state of Iran," Karhi wrote.
He went on to say that the channel's reporters in Israel do not carry official GPO cards but that they are still allowed to broadcast from around Israel, including in sensitive locations.
The communications minister enclosed examples of people involved with Al-Mayadeen supporting terrorism. These examples included screenshots of broadcasts by the channel that glorified Hamas's October 7 attack, false reports on Israel using poisonous gas on Gazan civilians, and live footage exposing IDF positions in Gaza and the South.
"Given all this, I request that, according to emergency regulation, you give me the authority regarding foreign broadcasters harming national security that dictate that if the defense minister is convinced of actual damage to national security by the channel, and with the agreement of the cabinet, the communications minister is allowed to act accordingly," he wrote.
Karhi added that he had spoken to GPO Manager Nitzan Chen and was told that the GPO and censor are deeply concerned about the censorship violations committed by Al-Mayadeen.
Why is Al Jazeera still operating in Israel?
This request was made after Karhi demanded the shutting down of Al Jazeera in Israel last week. Originally, his basis was that the channel was harming national morale, but after seeking legal advice, he revised it to say that it was because the channel significantly damaged national security.
But even after the government approved emergency regulations that would have allowed for Al-Jazeera to be shut down, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly refused to bring up the issue for a vote in the cabinet.
Al Jazeera is a state-owned Qatari channel, and Qatar has been helping with negotiations for the release of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas.
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