Israeli Supreme Court Reviews Who Can Appoint CEO of Public Broadcasting Corporation
The Israeli Supreme Court is currently deliberating petitions concerning the future leadership of the Public Broadcasting Corporation, known as HaTachbul. The court session, held on Wednesday, addresses the imminent risk that within two months the corporation could be left without a CEO or a functioning board capable of making decisions. Present at the hearing are Supreme Court President Isaac Amit, Justice Ofer Groskopf, and Justice Gila Kanfi-Steinitz.
The corporation's board currently has only five members out of seven, insufficient to hold meetings or make decisions. Additionally, since November 2024, the board has lacked a permanent chairperson. The court is also considering a request to extend the term of CEO Golan Yochpaz, whose tenure is set to expire in early November. By law, the CEO serves a four-year term, which the board may extend by an additional four years.
Communications Minister Shlomo Karai argues that under the current circumstances, no entity can extend Yochpaz's term, appoint a new CEO, or select an interim manager. He contends that even the court lacks authority to appoint a CEO and suggests that if any body can make such decisions, it is the government. Karai previously attempted to pass legislation allowing the communications minister to appoint an interim CEO when the board is nonfunctional; although approved by the ministerial legislation committee, it was never advanced further.
Karai accuses Government Legal Advisor Gali Baharav-Miara of obstructing his statutory powers by "throwing a wrench in the works." In May, the Supreme Court ruled that Karai's dismissal of the search committee chair, retired judge Nechama Muniz, was unauthorized and voided the decision. The court ordered Karai to appoint all board members. The Communications Ministry was also ordered to pay 60,000 shekels to the nonprofit organization Hatzlacha and 40,000 shekels to the corporation. Despite this, Karai has refused to sign new appointments.
