On Sunday, the Israeli cabinet voted unanimously to shut down the operations of the Al Jazeera news network within Israel, including by closing its offices, confiscating equipment, and preventing Israelis from accessing the station on television or via the Internet.
“This is a profoundly undemocratic move that undermines two sacred rights in liberal democracies: the freedom of expression and the freedom of the press,” explained Elisheva Goldberg, senior director of media and policy. “It is sure to have a chilling effect beyond this one news organization. We already know that Israeli public broadcaster Kan and Channel 12, two of Israel’s television top news networks, are in the crosshairs of this government. Shuttering Al Jazeera sets a precedent; it will be easier the next time the government wants to silence its critics.”
In terms of the government’s apparent aim of silencing Al Jazeera, said Goldberg, the move is sure to backfire. “Only Israelis are being barred from accessing the network. There is no meaningful impact on Al Jazeera’s ability to report from Gaza, for example. And, if anything, the network’s popular appeal will only grow because of this confrontation.”
Organizations backed by the New Israel Fund are working to mitigate the harm done by the government’s action and to reinforce democratic norms. For instance, in an effort to combat the chilling effects of anti-democratic moves, the Zulat Institute and the I’lam Center provide training for Israeli reporters of both Jewish and Palestinian heritage. In addition, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) provides legal services to reporters who are attacked by the government and its political allies.
ACRI has also petitioned Israel’s High Court of Justice seeking a restraining order to suspend the closure of Al Jazeera. The filing was done as part of a legal case that ACRI initiated a month ago seeking to invalidate recently passed legislation that expanded the government’s ability to sanction media organizations based outside of Israel. ACRI will continue to challenge this undemocratic law in court.