Israel: Bill To Criminalise Documentation Of Soldiers’ Actions Proposed

A bill seeking to criminalise the documentation of soldiers’ actions in the field of action has been proposed in Israel, with the backing of its Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman, as reported by the Middle East Monitor.

The bill was proposed on Thursday (24 May) and will be up for discussion in the Israeli Ministerial Committee for Legislation today (27 May).

The bill proposes that “anyone who shoots a video or a photo, or records soldiers while they are doing their job, with the aim of disturbing the morale of soldiers and citizens, will be sentenced to five years imprisonment. In case this is done with the aim of destabilising the state’s security, the perpetrator will be sentenced to ten years imprisonment.”

The bill, proposed by Israeli lawmaker Robert Ilatov, is being seen as a response to activist attempts to film Israeli security forces as they counter Palestinian protestors in Gaza and West Bank.

The bill will also prohibit the sharing of such content over media and social media platforms. Making a case for the bill, Ilatov said that “The best conditions must be provided for the soldiers to do their duty without worrying about any activist or organisation publishing their photos to intimidate them.”

“The majority of these organisations receive support from associations and governments with anti-Israel agenda, and that they are using these contents to jeopardise Israel and its security,” he added.