JERUSALEM: A ban on Al Jazeera’s operations in Israel was extended for another 45 days by Israel’s telecoms regulator on Sunday after the cabinet agreed its broadcasts posed a threat to security.
A Tel Aviv court last week upheld an initial 35-day ban on Al Jazeera operations in Israel, imposed by the government on national security grounds, which ended on Saturday.
In a separate ruling on a petition by Al Jazeera against the closure, Israel’s Supreme Court described the measure against the Qatari-backed broadcaster channel as “precedent-setting.”
It gave Israel’s government until Aug. 8 to offer arguments for “why it should not be determined that the Law Preventing a Foreign Broadcaster from Harming National Security” is void.
Al Jazeera had told the court it did not incite violence or terrorism and that the ban was disproportionate, court documents showed. The channel, which has criticized Israel’s military operations in Gaza, was not immediately available for comment.
The network’s broadcasts on the cable and satellite companies and access to its websites will remain blocked, Israel’s Communications Ministry said.
“We will not allow the terrorist channel Al Jazeera to broadcast from Israel and endanger our fighters,” said Shlomo Karhi, adding that the law authorized him as communications minister to take such action against foreign broadcasters.
“In light of the seriousness of the damage to the security of the state I am convinced that the closure orders will be extended in the future as well,” he said.
Judge Shai Yaniv had said he had been provided with evidence, which he did not specify, of a long-standing and close relationship between the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas and Al Jazeera, accusing the channel of promoting Hamas’ goals.
Israeli authorities raided a Jerusalem hotel room used by Al Jazeera as its office on May 5 and said they were shutting the operation down for the duration of the Gaza war.
Israel extends Al Jazeera ban by 45 days, cites security threat
https://arab.news/cuhf9
Israel extends Al Jazeera ban by 45 days, cites security threat
- A Tel Aviv court last week upheld an initial 35-day ban on Al Jazeera operations in Israel
- Israel’s Supreme Court described the measure against the Qatari-backed broadcaster channel as ‘precedent-setting’
Eurovision Sport, Camb.ai to provide live subtitling for Paralympic Winter Games
- Partnership aims to increase accessibility for all audiences
- Milano Cortina Games run from Friday to March 15
LONDON: Eurovision Sport, the European Broadcasting Union’s free-to-air streaming platform, will provide live and on-demand subtitling for coverage of the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games in partnership with AI language company Camb.ai
The service will run across all competition days, allowing viewers to stream all six Paralympic Winter Games sports on Eurovision Sport with real-time subtitles. The Games open on Friday and run through March 15.
Camb.ai will supply contextual speech-to-text transcription for both live and catch-up coverage, which the organizers said would support accessibility without altering the editorial integrity of broadcasts.
Eurovision Sport Managing Director Alan Fagan said the aim was to make the Games available to “the widest possible audience,” by scaling up digital accessibility across every event on the platform.
The initiative forms part of the EBU’s most extensive digital coverage of a Paralympic Winter Games to date and complements member broadcasters’ linear output.
It also reflects a wider industry push to make live sport easier to follow for viewers watching without sound, people with hearing impairments and audiences consuming content on demand.
Camb.ai’s Chief Technology Officer Akshat Prakash said the company was proud to deepen its partnership with Eurovision Sport, describing the platform as a leader in applying new technology to sports coverage.
The two organizations began working together in 2024, when they delivered what they described as Europe’s first AI-powered real-time translated sports commentary during European Athletics events.
