Israel’s High Court of Justice has ordered the state to submit its long-awaited response to a petition demanding media access to Gaza by early January, sharply criticizing the government for what it described as a pattern of stalling.
In a ruling issued Sunday, Justice Ofer Grosskopf made clear that the court would not tolerate another postponement in the case brought by the Foreign Press Association. The judge set January 4 as the final deadline for the state to present its position, rejecting a request for an additional three-week extension.
“Now the respondents [the state and the defense minister] are requesting another extension, this time of three weeks, and they [may yet] ask for more. It is not possible to agree to this,” Grosskopf wrote, adding that if the state does not comply, the court will issue a ruling without waiting further.
The petition, filed in 2024, challenges Israel’s sweeping ban on independent journalistic access to Gaza since the outbreak of the war. The state initially informed the court in June last year that it could not allow journalists into the territory due to security concerns, a position it has not formally updated since.
Grosskopf noted that the government had previously committed to submitting its response by November 23, but then sought and received two extensions that pushed the deadline to Sunday. Those delays were granted despite the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that came into effect on October 10, a development the court expected the state to address.
The FPA welcomed the court’s decision, saying, “After two years of the state’s delay tactics, we are pleased that the court’s patience has finally run out.”
“We renew our call for the State of Israel to immediately grant journalists free and unfettered access to the Gaza Strip. And should the government continue to obstruct press freedoms, we hope that the Supreme Court will recognize and uphold those freedoms,” the organization added.
Since the war began, policy set by the defense minister and the Israel Defense Forces has barred all journalists from entering Gaza independently. Israeli reporters, and a smaller number of foreign correspondents, have been permitted into the enclave only as embedded journalists accompanying IDF units.
The state has argued that allowing independent media access would endanger both soldiers and reporters, citing operational and personal security risks. Those justifications, the petition maintains, are far less compelling in light of the cessation of hostilities.
According to the FPA, the government has requested eight separate deferrals since the petition was submitted, all of which were approved by the court. A hearing was also postponed earlier this year due to the June conflict with Iran.
In its filing, the association argues that the blanket prohibition on independent reporting from Gaza “contravenes the foundational principles of the state as a democratic country, and represents a severe, unreasonable and disproportionate injury to the freedom of the press, freedom of expression, and freedom of employment for journalists and the right to information.”
The petition further claims that foreign journalists have been given fewer opportunities to embed with the IDF than their Israeli counterparts, that decisions on who is allowed to enter Gaza are made largely without coordination with the FPA, and that embedded reporting is so tightly supervised that it prevents comprehensive and meaningful coverage of the war.
{Matzav.com}
