Three Supreme Court justices on Monday morning issued a temporary injunction blocking the Israeli government from closing the Galei Zahal radio station.
Justices Daphne Barak-Erez, Alex Stein, and Yechiel Kasher ordered the government to provide an in-depth explanation of why it will not cancel the decision to shutter Galei Zahal.
The injunction follows appeals from five sources, including the left-wing Movement for Quality Government in Israel, the Journalism Council, the Galei Zahal Workers Committee, the Journalists Organization, and the Academics for Israeli Democracy.
The order demands that the Israeli government provide its response by March 15, focusing on the process of the decision-making and the way decisions were made by the government itself.
This is not the first time the Israeli government has acted to close Galei Zahal, but it is the first time the Supreme Court and the Movement for Quality Government in Israel have involved themselves in the matter.
In 2017, Ha'aretz reported that then-Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu) was set to approve Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot's recommendation to remove Army Radio from IDF responsibility and transfer it to the Defense Ministry.
According to the report, Liberman intended to turn the military broadcasting station into a unit in his office. Publication of the final decision is subject to the approval of the Attorney General.
IDF soldiers would have continued working in the radio station, exactly as they do currently. The plan was pushed forward thanks to pressure from Eisenkot.
In 2020, then-IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi spoke to then-Defense Minister Benny Gantz, asking him to take steps to reform Galei Tzahal (IDF Radio), either by turning the station over to civilian control or closing it down altogether. Kochavi stated that the station cannot remain as it is under military control.
According to the report by Ofer Hadad of Channel 12 News, Kochavi told Gantz that he finds himself devoting too much time to issues related to IDF Radio and asked the Defense Minister to find a way to remove the station from the IDF's authority.
IDF Manpower Directorate Commander Gen. Moti Almoz made similar statements in both open and closed forums calling for IDF Radio to be removed from the IDF's authority.
MK Matan Kahana also supported the moving, writing on Facebook: "I congratulate Chief of Staff Kochavi for his courageous move. There is no place for a military radio station in a democracy. The law that I submitted for the privatization of IDF Radio should be advanced immediately to allow the public to determine the nature of the station."
Following this, in 2021Gantz decided to remove Galai Tzhal (IDF Radio) from the Ministry of Defense, at Kochavi's recommendation. Following preliminary discussions held in the IDF and the Ministry of Defense, it was decided to distance both organizations from the otherwise independent radio station, due to the need to separate the IDF from the political spectrum.
Ganz said at the time: "The decision I made on the recommendation of the chief of staff is a matter of values and not of budget. Israel's free press is extremely important, and I will continue to defend it and ensure its independence, but the existence of a military station in the IDF is unreasonable at this time."
"I have determined that those in uniform will not engage in politics in any manner. This is an unthinkable state of affairs that contradicts the IDF's values of integrity and proper conduct. I value Army Radio and the broad spectrum of ideas it represents, but it needs to find another outlet for its activities."
In September 2023, then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant decided not to close or privatize Galei Tzahal, accepting the recommendation of the professional committee he established, despite the position of former Chiefs of Staff who appeared before the committee and supported the removal of Galei Tzahal from the IDF.
According to a report by Kan 11 News’ Avishai Grinzaig, Gallant asked to hear the opinion of Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi who clarified that he supports removing the station from the IDF.
In addition, Gallant decided that the participation of soldiers in political coverage would be reduced, the volume of engagement in military and social matters would be increased and the monitoring mechanism for the station would be changed.
MK Dan Illouz (Likud) responded to the report and said, "I read the reports that my friend, the Minister of Defense, decided not to privatize the radio station Galei Tzahal. I very much hope that these reports are not true. The very existence of a military radio station that broadcasts to the general public is an attack on democracy and the freedom of the press. A military radio station is a tool found in military dictatorial regimes, not in democracies."
"I have not found another democratic country with a military radio station that broadcasts civilian content to the general public. We are a country that has an army, not an army that has a country. The freedom of the press entails reducing the interference of government bodies in the media and is not supposed to permit government bodies, and certainly not military ones, to manage media bodies. A free press begins with a free market," he added.