Jerusalem, 22 December, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Israel’s cabinet on Monday unanimously approved a plan to shut down Army Radio, one of the country’s longest-running public broadcasters, setting off a fierce legal and political dispute over press freedom, military neutrality, and government authority.
Under the decision, the station — known in Hebrew as Galei Tzahal — will cease operations by March 1, 2026, according to the Defense Ministry. Its popular music-focused subsidiary, Galgalatz, is expected to continue broadcasting.
Army Radio has broadcast to the Israeli public for 75 years, serving as both a news outlet and a cultural presence for the military.
Defense Minister Israel Katz, who spearheaded the move, described the arrangement as a democratic “anomaly,” arguing that a radio station serving the general public should not be operated by the military. Speaking at the cabinet meeting, Katz said the station’s involvement in political and current-affairs programming forces the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) into public political debate.
“This creates a fundamental difficulty that harms the IDF, its soldiers, and its unity,” Katz told ministers. He added that the problem became “even more acute” following Hamas’s October 7, 2023, assault on Israel. He said the ministry has received repeated complaints from soldiers, civilians, and bereaved families who believe the station does not represent them and has at times damaged morale.
The decision is backed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “A military station broadcasting under the authority of the army exists in North Korea and maybe a few other countries,” Netanyahu said. “Israel should not be among them.”
Netanyahu added that he has long supported proposals to abolish or privatize Army Radio. “I am open to all of these proposals because I believe in competition,” he said, concluding that “the time has come, and better sooner rather than later.”
Army Radio currently employs 224 active-duty soldiers, 85 civilian IDF employees, and 48 content workers contracted on a consultancy basis. All now face uncertainty. Katz announced that an expert team within the Defense Ministry will oversee the closure “responsibly,” including arranging employee terminations under lawful and fair conditions.
He also ordered the immediate suspension of all recruitment and selection processes for the radio unit, both for conscripts and reservists, and instructed the IDF to begin gradually reassigning serving soldiers to other units, prioritizing combat and combat-support roles. Contracts with external journalists and advisers are to be terminated, and the lease on the station’s building in Jaffa is to be ended. These measures are scheduled to be completed by February 15, ahead of the final shutdown two weeks later.
The decision drew sharp criticism from journalists, civil society groups, and legal authorities. The Movement for Quality Government in Israel filed a petition with the High Court of Justice, arguing that the decision was driven by “ulterior motives,” based on flawed factual grounds, and likely to cause serious harm to freedom of expression and the public interest.
“The government has no authority to take this step by cabinet resolution,” the group said, arguing that Army Radio’s operations are anchored in law and can only be terminated through legislation passed by the Knesset.
Israel’s Union of Journalists echoed that position, calling the move “a severe and unlawful infringement on freedom of expression and freedom of the press” and pledging to challenge it in court.
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara also opposed the closure ahead of the cabinet vote. A detailed legal opinion authored by her deputies warned that shutting Army Radio would “undermine and weaken Israel’s broadcasting media map, which is already on unstable ground.”
The opinion cautioned that public access to reliable, professionally produced news would “dramatically narrow” close to national elections, describing the decision as a “profound and significant infringement of freedom of expression.”
Court challenges are expected in the coming weeks, setting the stage for a high-profile legal battle over the future of public broadcasting and democratic oversight in Israel.
Related Topics
