The Israeli government has defended a draconian media law that bars international media from Gaza, telling the Supreme Court that it was necessary due to security risks in the Palestinian territory.
Since Israel launched its genocidal Gaza war in October 2023, following a Hamas incursion, the authorities have barred foreign journalists from independently entering the devastated coastal enclave.
Instead, Israel has allowed only a limited number of reporters to enter Gaza on a case-by-case basis, embedded with its military forces inside the blockaded territory.
The Foreign Press Association (FPA), which represents hundreds of foreign journalists working in Israel and the Palestinian territories, filed a petition with the Supreme Court in 2024 seeking immediate and unrestricted access for international media to the Gaza Strip.
Since then, the court has given several extensions to the Israeli authorities to come up with a plan, but at a hearing last month, it set Jan. 4 as a final deadline.
