Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the law's passing, saying that "Al Jazeera has harmed Israel's security, actively participated in the October 7 massacre, and incited against IDF soldiers. It's time to remove Hamas' mouthpiece from our country."
He added: "The terrorist channel Al Jazeera will no longer broadcast from Israel. I intend to take immediate action in accordance with the new law to halt the channel's activities."
The bill received support from 71 lawmakers, while 10 opposed it.
The law allows the communications minister, with the prime minister's consent, to order the cessation of broadcasts of a foreign channel broadcasting in Israel if the prime minister is convinced that its content directly threatens the country's security. The law states that the decision requires approval from the security cabinet or the government.
So basically an end to press freedom, with cross-party support. Yikes.
also in Israel news today is this--the probable shutting down of Al Jazeera's operations there. Netanyahu says he'll act swiftly to request the outlet be banned under this new law
It's entirely possible Al Jazeera has an agenda. Arguably probable, given that NYT, WaPo, the BBC and any other "well respected" outlet each has agendas.
The missing bit here is what the alleged relevant agenda is. Proof that Al Jazeera has ulterior motives deleterious to Israel's interests would go a long way toward making this feel less icky, but that's apparently a bridge too far for a propaganda claim.
This is a "did you she what she was wearing" level of proof.