Israel censor warns sites over Iraq news

NEWS Israel's top government censor has warned Web sites in her country not to publish sensitive information about the war with Iraq. Chief Censor Rachel Dolev sent a letter on Wednesday to "scoop" news sites, instructing editors to seek government permission before publishing information about "materials that could pose a threat to the security of the State of Israel and its residents". Dolev's letter warned the sites, including Rotter.net and Fresh.co.il, not to publish the locations of any missile strikes, information about Israeli Cabinet deliberations or information about Israeli wartime cooperation with other governments such as that of the United States. Dolev said editors must contact official censors in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem before posting information online. "In addition, censors will be working 24 hours a day in the two media centres -- in the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, and in the David Intercontinental in Tel Aviv -- and you may also turn to them," the letter said. Boaz Guttman, an Israeli attorney, said that the Web sites targeted are widely read. "Israelis around the globe are connected to this forum," Guttman said. "In such a crazy country, the news appears quicker (in such forums) than in the official media. So you can get videos, pictures, a long time before they will be published on regular TV or radio." Guttman said this was the first time that the government has warned Web sites. "The (Israel Defense Forces) censor can forget about cooperation," Guttman said. "Everybody knows the law well. If someone needs to publish something, he also knows how to do it without a trace." Israel has ranked poorly in a press-freedoms index created by advocacy group Reporters Without Borders, ranking below the Palestinian National Authority, Zambia and Cambodia. Last year, the Committee to Protect Journalists condemned what it called "attempts by the (Israel Defense Forces) to intimidate the press from covering the IDF's widening military campaign in the territories".

See the Digital Rights News Section for the latest on copy protection, piracy, DVD recording and zoning. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Membership FAQ

ZDNet UK Live

the future of mobile will be location and context aware. This means, you will have apps that will suggest you depending where you are right...

2 hours ago by sameerhere on Symbian^3 will do resistive multitouch, says Nokia

hello i would like to have some form of a answer to this question as it concerns the goverment i want to know why if your on state benefits as a...

2 hours ago by kenye2009 on ITN to launch ITV online news service

love the LHC info. Keep up the good work. May God bless all in volved.

8 hours ago by georgiox on LHC to run for longest continuous period

You are quite right. HDS has not been marketing their products well. USPV is miles ahead in terms of ease of use and technology on enterprise...

13 hours ago by sgardia on Will the SUN set on Hitachi Data Systems OEM relationship?

Fedora is the same way as well. The yum update system uses "presto" which shrinks the amount of data needed for download. It's a great system....

24 hours ago by apexwm on Can you believe it - 2765 kB will be freed?

Updated ID cards considered for 2012: [zdnet.co.uk] The government is considering introducing a new generation of ID... http://dlvr.it/KpBZ

1 day ago on Twitter by cybfor

Google, Viacom trade blows in YouTube copyright spat: [zdnet.co.uk] Google and the US media giant Viacom have issued... http://dlvr.it/Knht

1 day ago on Twitter by cybfor

Be sure to include an audio option - eg. a beep tone - to intensify and reiterate the action. This will greatly benefit some consumers and give...

1 day ago by CIMITL

Data disposal is really important to get right. There are standards set by UK and US federal governments to ensure that data is kept secure. If...

1 day ago by DataSecurityUK

Online Fiber Optic Certification Join a talented group of professionals, who are dedicated to Fiber Optic Networking technology. The online course...

1 day ago by chaycon1 on BT launches 40Mbps fibre-based broadband

Online Fiber Optic Certification Join a talented group of professionals, who are dedicated to Fiber Optic Networking technology. The online course...

1 day ago by chaycon1 on Google to build gigabit broadband to the home

Hi Dava, I'm glad to hear from you, and glad that you see things from the other side. I think that is the most important point of the whole...

1 day ago by J.A. Watson on Ubuntu 10.04 (Lucid Lynx) and the Latest Tempest

please please please please please please kill that spam bot.

1 day ago by dava4444 on ZDNet UK: faster, smarter, still IT all the way

1 day ago by 253chelisa253 on How security will look in 10 years

it is only greedy[microsoft]?

1 day ago by lezlow on Researchers break into BitLocker

it didn't post the link it's 'Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid Lynx Beta-1 First Look' on youtube :) Dava

1 day ago by dava4444 on Ubuntu 10.04 (Lucid Lynx) and the Latest Tempest

Hi James I disagree, Ubuntu needs a GUI update and this one IMO is quite good. your pics show a low res. here's a high res. on YouTube* The...

1 day ago by dava4444 on Ubuntu 10.04 (Lucid Lynx) and the Latest Tempest

Hi any news on the comment bot? knocking me back from my own blog is a bit cheeky lol *Mulder to Scully* "I think it has an agenda.." I know, I...

1 day ago by dava4444 on ZDNet UK: faster, smarter, still IT all the way

if you look at the Brentwood exchange on samknows it servers 21,000 residential propertiesm, Lowestoft serves 31,000! Come on BT sort yourselves...

1 day ago by benny boy on BT fibre broadband coming to 69 more towns

[programming] H.264 - a sting in the tail http://reddit.com/bfu4q [zdnet.co.uk]

1 day ago on Twitter by pbreddit

Featured white papers

Achieving PCI Compliance for:Privileged Password Management & Remote Vendor Access

e-DMZ Security

For multi-store outlets, including retail, banking, grocery, gas, hospitality, convenience stores and others, reducing (or avoiding) the cost of in-store system support and maintenance while maintaining compliance with PCI and other requirements has become a strategic challenge.

Download now

Web 2.0 Security Threats: How to Protect Your Enterprise Network

Qualys

Speaker: Dr. Chenxi Wang, Principal Analyst, Security and Risk Management, Forrester Research, Inc. As Enterprises are increasingly connected to the Internet and as hard organizational boundaries are fast disappearing, security professionals are facing fresh challenges in Enterprise computing.

Download now