Director General Amnon Shmueli of the Interior Ministry's Populatin and Immigration Authority has warned journalists that travel to enemy countries is a criminal offense that endangers their personal safety and the security of the state, especially for fear that Israelis may be kidnapped.
Responding to reports of Israeli journalists going to those countries without permission, Shmueli wrote to Director Nitzan Chen of the Government Press Office that Israel fears they will be arrested and interroged for information or recruited to enemy intelligence services, which can harm Israel from a security and diplomatic point of view. Noting existing policy on all Israeli citizens, he warned that journalists who go to enemy countries without permission risk criminal investigation and prosecution.