On 5 and 8 July, the offices of two Israeli newsrooms in Tel Aviv were attacked, with bricks being used to shatter the glass entrance doors of both. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) calls on the Israeli authorities to conduct a prompt investigation and to ensure the safety of journalists. It also calls on the government to put an end to its crackdown on media that criticise it.
On 8 July, the Tel Aviv office of the progressive Israeli newspaper Haaretz was attacked by a masked individual. Camera footage of the attack, which occurred at around 4am local time, showed the individual first throwing a brick at the glass entrance door, failing to break it. Following a second attempt, the door shattered and the suspect immediately fled the scene, the newspaper reported. Haaretzsaid that it filed a complaint with the police.
Three days prior to this attack, Channel 12’s Tel Aviv studios were also subject to a similar attack. On 5 July, a masked individual threw two stones at the glass entrance door, shattering it on the second impact.
In June, graffiti containing threats against Channel 11, 12 and 13 journalists was sprayed in the vicinity of the office. Channel 12 has been facing public pressure from right-wing figures, including Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, since it aired surveillance footage in 2024 that allegedly showed Israeli soldiers sexually abusing a Palestinian detainee at the Sde Teiman detention facility in the south of the country.
Since the start of the war in Gaza, on 7 October 2023, media outlets in Israel have been subjected to increasing pressure from the government, in particular if their coverage of the war can be deemed to be critical of the government.
The latest development in this regard was Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet refusing to comply with a Supreme Court decision on 5 July. While the judiciary permitted the Second Authority for Television and Radio to review the purchase of Channel 13 by government critics on 17 June, the cabinet passed a resolution stating that they would not recognise the regulatory body’s actions. The government had been attempting to appoint their own board at Israel’s television regulator, which had been ruled illegal by the Supreme Court on 17 June.
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said: “Attacks on newsrooms are attacks on journalism and the public’s right to information, and are unacceptable. Such attacks are made possible by pressure campaigns directed at journalists by government officials and a climate of impunity surrounding attacks on journalists. We call on the authorities to conduct a transparent and prompt investigation, and we urge the government to stop its crackdown on media that criticise it.
Source: IFJ
