Israel Media Watch has filed a complaint with the Second Authority for Television and Radio against the Israeli station Radio A-Shams following several complaints from Israeli listeners who were surprised to hear support for terrorism and denigration of Israel as “criminal” and “occupier.” Many complaints were also received regarding a weekly program broadcasting messages to convicted terrorists in Israeli prisons.
In 2003, when Radio A-Shams began broadcasting as a regional radio station, under the jurisdiction of the authority, managers said they would strike a balance between Israeli and Arab terminology – for example, referring to the IDF simply as “the army” and not “defense forces” or “occupation army.”