Israel's Second Authority Launches Violation Proceedings Against Radio Host Yinon Magal
Translated & summarized from Calcalist by baba
Israel's Second Authority for Television and Radio has opened violation proceedings against radio host Yinon Magal and station 103fm for calling hostage survivors and bereaved families "abhorrent people." Magal also urged listeners to vote for Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party during his broadcast. The authority cited violations of ethics rules, election law, and broadcast directives. Magal later claimed he excluded hostage families, despite reading their names.
The story in 6 lines · by baba
- Israel's Second Authority for Television and Radio launched violation proceedings against 103fm host Yinon Magal.
- Magal called hostage survivors and bereaved families "abhorrent people" on air.
- He also urged listeners to vote for Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party.
- The authority cited violations of ethics, election law, and broadcast directives.
- Magal's comments drew widespread public condemnation and outcry.
- He later claimed to have excluded hostage families from his remarks.
Israel's Second Authority for Television and Radio announced Thursday it has initiated violation proceedings against radio station 103fm following host Yinon Magal's on-air remarks. Magal referred to hostage survivors and bereaved families as "abhorrent people" during his program.
On Tuesday, ahead of the third anniversary of the October 7th Hamas attack, Magal attacked the signatories of the book "Benjamin Netanyahu, Master of Abandonment - The Legacy of the One Who Abandoned the Hostages." Among those signatories were hostage survivors and bereaved families.
During his broadcast, Magal stated, "These are abhorrent people, abhorrent, whose only absolution would be if they dropped the 'Mahl' [Likud party] ballot into Netanyahu's box in the elections." He then read out the names of the book's signatories, including Ofri Bibas, sister of hostage survivor Yarden Bibas, whose wife Shiri and young children Ariel and Kfir were murdered in captivity in Gaza; Eyal Eshel, whose daughter Roni was murdered in the Nachal Oz command post; and Einav Tsengauer, mother of hostage survivor Matan.
These statements sparked widespread public outcry and condemnation. Responding to the controversy on 103fm on Wednesday, Magal claimed, "I must say that I excluded the families of the hostages," despite having read their names on air.
The Second Authority stated that Magal's remarks exceeded legitimate criticism and constituted offensive attacks against the individuals. The authority also noted that urging listeners to vote for the Likud party violates election law, the Second Authority Law, and directives issued to stations in August. The authority emphasized the severity of Magal's comments, particularly given that he named relatives of hostages and bereaved families, and that the remarks were made close to Israel's national day of remembrance for the October 7th events.
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