Israel Media Watch has filed a complaint against the Israeli station Radio A-Shams following several complaints from listeners. Israelis who tuned in to the Arabic-language broadcasting were surprised to hear support for terrorism and denigration of Israel as “criminal.”
Many complaints were received regarding a weekly program broadcasting messages to convicted terrorists in Israeli prisons. The program's symbol is of a pair of handcuffed wrists next to a Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) flag.
Other complaints involved allegations that broadcasters referred to Israel as “criminal” and “occupier.” The station also referred to the creation of Israel in the 1940s as “a disaster” on its website.
Israel Media Watch sent the information it has gathered to the Second Authority for Television and Radio. The Second Authority has not yet responded to the allegations.
Radio A-Shams began broadcasting in 2003 as a regional radio station. At the time, managers said they would strike a balance between Israeli and Arab terminology – for example, avoiding the use of both “terrorists” and “martyrs” when referring to deceased terrorists, and referring to the IDF simply as “the army” and not “defense forces” or “occupation army.”
The station has proven to be extremely popular among Israeli Arabs. According to a Second Authority survey, it is the most popular of all Arabic-language radio programming in Israel.
A previous Arabic station, Radio 2000, was removed from the air in 2000 due to financial problems. Before its removal, Radio 2000 was accused of incitement over its coverage of the October riots that same year.