Israeli Ministers Green Light Bill To Ban Filming West Bank Soldiers

JERUSALEM, June 18, (Xinhua) - Israeli ministers voted on Sunday in favour of a bill to criminalize the filming and distribution of footages that put soldiers in the occupied West Bank in a negative light.

The bill now will undergo four full rounds of votes in the parliament before it becomes a law.

The first round was scheduled to be held on Wednesday. The new legislation is sponsored by Robert Ilatov, a lawmaker with the far-right party of "Israel Our Home."

It seeks to ban the photographing, recording, and publishing of soldiers' activity with the aim of hurting the "soldiers' spirit."

The bill calls for up to five years in prison for those who violate it. Israel has been frequently accused of using excessive force against Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

In 2017, the soldier Elor Azaria was convicted of manslaughter after he was caught on a video footage shooting to death an incapacitated and wounded Palestinian knifeman in Hebron.

The high-profile case triggered calls to bar activists from documenting other similar cases which might put soldiers in a negative light.

Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, leader of the "Israel Our Home" party, welcomed the committee's decision.

"The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) soldiers are under attack by Israel-haters and terror supporters who are looking to humiliate, degrade and harm them. We will put an end to this," Lieberman wrote on his Twitter account.

GNA