On Monday, the Israeli cabinet voted to close the Army Radio station, in a step that is part of a series of actions taken by the right-wing coalition led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which his critics consider as strikes against democracy.
Defense Minister Yisrael Katz proposed closing the Army Radio by March 1, 2026, considering it an attempt to maintain the non-partisan nature of the military.
Katz said in a statement that the radio was originally established to serve the soldiers of the army, but over time it has become a platform for opinions that "attack the Israeli army and its soldiers".
The Army Radio is one of two media outlets funded by the state. The other is the public broadcasting authority (Kan Radio), which operates a news TV channel, several radio stations, and a popular digital platform.
Katz stated that the station managed by the army and broadcasting to civilians represents an anomaly for any democratic system. Netanyahu said in a cabinet meeting, "I believe that this is found in North Korea and maybe in a few other countries, and perhaps we don't want to be among them."
Critics denounced this step, saying it would harm freedom of expression.
Anat Saragusti, who oversees press freedom at the Israeli Journalists' Union, said at a crisis conference attended by hundreds of journalists in Tel Aviv this month, "They want docile media, not critical media."
The Movement for Quality Government in Israel, an independent watchdog organization that combats corruption, has filed a petition to the Supreme Court challenging the government's decision.
The Israel Democracy Institute, a non-partisan research center, warned that closing the Army Radio would effectively end half of the independent public news broadcasting in Israel, emphasizing that such a measure should be presented to parliament before being implemented.
The institute stated in an online statement, "The decision to close a public media institution is not a step taken in isolation, but comes within a broader and concerning pattern of ongoing harm to Israeli democracy."
Other plans by Netanyahu's coalition include a law that expands the scope of a temporary emergency measure allowing the ban of media outlets considered a threat to national security, along with a comprehensive overhaul of the entire Israeli media market.
A series of legislative projects presented by the ruling coalition with nationalistic and religious orientations, which were mostly suspended during the two-year-long Israeli war on Gaza, included a radical reform of the judicial system, which sparked widespread popular protests in Israel.
As Israel approaches an election year, members of Netanyahu's coalition have reintroduced some of these projects. The Prime Minister is seeking a pardon in a trial for corruption charges he denies, in an unprecedented possibility.
