High-profile case8/24/2026

Attorney General Asks High Court of Justice to Cancel Expansion of Regional Radio Stations’ Broadcasts

Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara informed the High Court of Justice that Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi was not authorized to expand the broadcast areas of several regional radio stations into northern Israel. According to her position, no specific operational need for such a decision was established; the source does not report a court ruling.

Key facts

•Court: High Court of Justice
•Petitioners: Lobby 99 and Hatzlacha
•Directives in dispute: May 2026
•Change in the Home Front Command’s position: end of July 2026
•Approximately 51,000 second- and third-generation devices
•Legal provision: Section 13A of the Communications Law

What Led to the Dispute

The petition was filed by the organizations Lobby 99 and Hatzlacha. They are challenging the communications minister’s directives, issued in May 2026, which allowed the stations Kol Hai, Kol Barama, al-Shams, Radio Nas, and Radio Lev HaMedina — Brivia to expand their broadcasts into the north beyond the areas specified in their licenses. The minister cited the need to broadcast alerts and advance instructions, including to the Haredi public that uses “kosher” phones.

The Attorney General’s Position

The response was submitted to the High Court of Justice on behalf of Baharav-Miara by attorneys Arin Safadi-Atila and Omer Rozenoks of the High Court of Justice Litigation Department. The attorney general argues that the emergency powers in the Communications Law do not permit the use of a security mechanism for the purpose of a voluntary commercial expansion of broadcasts. She also believes that granting private stations a significant economic and regulatory advantage without a competitive process lacks a sufficient basis.

Why the Operational Need Is Disputed

The Home Front Command had previously determined that there was no need to expand broadcasts on weekdays and that the “silent wave” on Saturdays was sufficient, but its commander, Maj. Gen. Shai Klepper, changed his position at the end of July 2026. According to the attorney general, the conclusion was based on data concerning approximately 51,000 second- and third-generation “kosher” devices, without an independent field examination. It was not determined how many device owners reside in the north, whether they have other means of receiving alerts, or whether they would listen to the radio regularly.

The Alternative and Status of the Proceedings

The Kan Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation announced that it could transmit the required instructions through the Kan Moreshet station. Baharav-Miara believes this further undermines the need to expand the licensed areas of the private regional stations under Section 13A of the Communications Law. The source reports only the attorney general’s position in the proceedings; it does not mention a final ruling by the High Court of Justice.

What this means for you

If the High Court of Justice accepts the attorney general’s position, emergency powers could not be used to expand commercial radio broadcasts without demonstrating a specific security need. For listeners in the north, this could result in the cancellation of the expansion, although the court’s final outcome was still unknown at the time of the response described.

Find a lawyer for this topic

Case analysis based on court rulings