Online safety & content laws in Israel (2026)

Legal framework

No comprehensive online-safety law. A patchwork regime: Communications Law/ISP filtering duty (2011); general criminal and incitement law applied to online content; a voluntary content-removal arrangement run by the Ministry of Justice 'Cyber Unit' (upheld by the Supreme Court in Adalah v. State Attorney, 2021); and the Foreign Broadcasters Law (Al Jazeera Law, extended to 2027). A comprehensive 'Regulation of Digital Content Platforms' framework recommended by the Ministry of Communications (Dec 2022) and a long-pending 'Facebook Bill' (criminal content-removal bill) remain unenacted.

Key points: internet & online safety in Israel

1. 01No comprehensive online-safety law — proposals pending

   In December 2022 the Ministry of Communications published Israel's first comprehensive policy paper recommending EU-DSA-style rules on 'very large' platforms (>5% of Israelis as users), including a dedicated regulator, duty-of-care, transparency reports, and liability for failing to remove illegal content. The report has not been translated into enacted legislation.

   gornitzky.com timesofisrael.com

2. 02'Facebook Bill' / criminal content removal bill — proposed, not enacted

   Successive versions of a bill allowing Israeli courts to order platforms to remove user-generated content constituting any criminal offence under the Penal Law have been introduced and passed initial/first readings in the Knesset, but have repeatedly failed to complete the three readings needed for enactment. Critics (IDI, academics) describe it as among the most intrusive such proposals in a democracy.

   timesofisrael.com timesofisrael.com lawfaremedia.org

3. 03Cyber Unit — voluntary takedown arrangement, no statutory basis

   The State Attorney's 'Cyber Unit' refers tens of thousands of posts annually to Facebook, X, YouTube and others under platforms' own terms of service rather than a statutory removal order; roughly 90% are removed. The Supreme Court (Adalah v. State Attorney, April 2021) upheld the practice but characterised it as 'concealed governmental activity' and urged the Knesset to put it on statutory footing — which has not happened.

   lawfaremedia.org globalfreedomofexpression.columbia.edu adalah.org

4. 04ISP filtering duty and child-protection provisions

   Under 2011 amendments to the Communications (Telecommunications and Broadcasting) Law, Israeli ISPs must offer subscribers free optional filtering of pornographic and other harmful content and inform them of its availability. Successive bills to make this opt-out (requiring adults to actively request access to adult content, with age verification) have passed first readings but have not been enacted.

   main.knesset.gov.il timesofisrael.com timesofisrael.com

5. 05Foreign Broadcasters Law ('Al Jazeera Law') extended to 2027

   A temporary April 2024 law empowers the Communications Minister, with cabinet approval, to shut down foreign media outlets deemed a threat to state security — used to close Al Jazeera's Israel operations. In July 2025 the Knesset extended the law until 31 December 2027 (22-10 vote). The law covers broadcast and online distribution of designated outlets within Israel.

   arabnews.com dailysabah.com timesofisrael.com

6. 06Platform liability — mostly general law, limited specific duties

   There is no dedicated intermediary-liability statute. Platforms are governed by general tort, criminal (incitement, terror-support, child sexual abuse material), consumer-protection, defamation and copyright law (including a 2019 online-piracy reform allowing court-ordered site blocking). Representation-in-Israel requirements and proactive moderation duties exist only as recommendations in the 2022 Communications Ministry report, not as enforceable obligations.

   gornitzky.com mondaq.com lexology.com

Timeline of decisions

1. 23 Dec 2025Law
   Knesset extends 'Al Jazeera Law' on foreign broadcasters to 2027

   Lawmakers extended the temporary law letting senior ministers shut foreign news networks deemed a security threat for two more years, prolonging the ban on Al Jazeera and entrenching executive control over foreign media presence.

   Times of Israel

2. 5 May 2024Enforcement · official
   Government orders temporary shutdown of Al Jazeera in Israel

   Acting on the new Foreign Broadcasters Law and a Shin Bet opinion that the channel's broadcasts harm state security, the cabinet voted to close Al Jazeera's operations and seize its equipment, the first use of the law against an online/broadcast outlet.

   Library of Congress

3. 1 Jan 2022Law
   Bill to remove 'dangerous' social media content advances

   The Bill for Protecting the Public from Dangerous Publication on Social Media would let courts order removal of online content endangering a person or the public; critics called it among the most intrusive content-removal proposals in any democracy.

   Times of Israel

4. 12 Apr 2021Decision · official
   Supreme Court upholds Cyber Unit's voluntary takedown model

   The High Court rejected the Adalah/ACRI petition, ruling that the State Attorney's Cyber Unit referrals to platforms are not reviewable state action because platforms make the final removal decision, legitimizing 'alternative enforcement' notice-and-takedown.

   Library of Congress

5. 1 Jan 2018Law
   'Facebook Bill' to court-order content removal withdrawn

   A bill enabling courts to order platforms to remove posts deemed incitement advanced but was pulled by the prime minister at the last minute, leaving Israel without dedicated harmful-content legislation and reliant on the Cyber Unit's informal route.

   INSS

6. 17 Jul 2017Law · official
   Internet Site Restriction Law enacted

   The Law on Authorities for the Prevention of Committing Crimes Through Use of an Internet Site, 5777-2017 first authorized district courts to order ISPs to block or restrict sites tied to terror, drugs, prostitution, child sexual abuse material, or illegal gambling.

   Library of Congress

7. 1 Sept 2015Guidance
   State Attorney's Cyber Unit established

   The Justice Ministry created the Cyber Unit to flag terror and incitement content to platforms like Facebook, Google and Twitter for 'voluntary' removal without court process, referrals grew from ~2,200 (2016) to over 14,000 (2018), with ~90% honored.

   Columbia Global Freedom of Expression

Sources

1. 1.gornitzky.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Social-platforms-regulation-report-English
2. 2.timesofisrael.com/israel-seeks-to-apply-rules-to-regulate-social-media-platforms-offens
3. 3.timesofisrael.com/knesset-advances-bill-censoring-criminal-social-media-posts/
4. 4.lawfaremedia.org/article/when-platforms-do-states-bidding-who-accountable-not-governme
5. 5.globalfreedomofexpression.columbia.edu/cases/adalah-legal-center-for-arab-minority-rights-in-israel-v-state-
6. 6.main.knesset.gov.il/EN/activity/mmm/AgeVerificationMechanisms24062024.pdf
7. 7.arabnews.com/node/2627245/media
8. 8.mondaq.com/media-telecoms-it-entertainment/1330166/tmt-comparative-guide
9. 9.lawfaremedia.org/article/israels-proposed-facebook-bill
10. 10.timesofisrael.com/knesset-extends-authorities-power-to-ban-broadcasts-deemed-harmful-to
11. 11.timesofisrael.com/proposed-censorship-bill-more-intrusive-than-in-any-other-democracy-s
12. 12.adalah.org/en/content/view/9859
13. 13.timesofisrael.com/knesset-approves-first-reading-of-bill-to-curb-childrens-access-to-po
14. 14.timesofisrael.com/ministers-approve-bill-to-block-internet-porn/
15. 15.dailysabah.com/world/mid-east/israel-extends-media-law-that-banned-al-jazeera-by-2-m
16. 16.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=e01df7fb-5429-416c-b030-76b3f16f376a