Tel Aviv - Two east Jerusalem employees of a production
company servicing various media outlets worldwide, including one
based in Iran, were indicted in Israel Tuesday for breaking Israeli
military censorship, the Ynet news site reported.
Kadir Shahin, a reporter with Iranian Arabic-speaking Alalam
television station, and producer Muhammad Sarhan are accused of
reporting that Israeli ground troops had entered the Gaza Strip on
January 3, before the information was cleared for publication.
According to the indictment, filed in the Jerusalem District
court, the two were reporting from the Israeli side of the Gaza
border when they spotted Israeli forces gearing up for the ground
incursion into the Strip.
Although allegedly aware the information had not been cleared by
the military censor, they two began a live broadcast detailing the
troops' moves, the indictment charges.
According to the prosecution, their broadcast included information
which they knew could easily find its way to viewers in Gaza,
including Hamas members, with whom Israel is located in combat in the
salient.
The prosecution also asked the court to remand the two in custody
until the end of the legal proceedings against them, arguing that
their office is based in the West Bank city of Ramallah, thus posing
a risk they could try to flee if released.
Foreign correspondents working in Israel are required to sign a
form agreeing to abide by military censorship regulations.
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