| Galey Israel | |
| Area: | Central Israel and the West Bank |
| Country: | IL |
| Language: | Hebrew |
| Owner: | Yossi Saban and Tzvika Shalom |
Galey Israel (Hebrew: גלי ישראל) is a regional radio station in Israel and the West Bank, broadcasting on frequencies 94 FM in the central area, and 89.3 FM and 106.5 FM in the Jerusalem area. The station belongs to the Radio Israel group, owned by businessmen Yossi Saban and Tzvika Shalom (brother of Silvan Shalom), who also own Radio Tel Aviv and Radio Darom. Its studios are located in Giv'at Ze'ev. The station began broadcasting on February 22, 2010. Its broadcasts are received in the West Bank and in areas of Israel. In general, the station is identified with the political right in Israel and does not broadcast on Shabbat and Jewish holidays.[1] [2]
In 2007, it was decided to establish a regional radio station in Judea and Samaria. The Gush Shalom movement filed a petition with the High Court of Justice against the intention to establish the station, claiming that it was not within the authority of the Second Authority, as Israeli law does not apply in these areas.[3] [4] Following the petition, the then Central Command General Gadi Shamni announced in 2008 the establishment of the "Second Authority for Television and Radio – Judea and Samaria". This body granted a license in February 2009 to the Radio"Sh company to operate a regional radio station in the West Bank, which began broadcasting on February 22, 2010, under the brand "Galey Israel".[5]
Initially, it was proposed to name the station "Radio Israel", but following a lawsuit by Kol Israel due to the similarity in names, the name was changed to "Galey Israel". In the past, the station broadcast news by radio announcers. In October 2018, it was announced that starting from mid-November 2018, the station would begin a collaboration with Channel 20, in which the channel would broadcast news editions produced by Channel 20, and the station's programs between 7:00-13:00 would be broadcast on Channel 20. For the purpose of the collaboration, the two broadcasting bodies established a joint news system. In 2018, the program "Petchi and Zemeri" (by Yotam Zemeri and Noam Petchi) won the talk show award of the Journalists' Association.
On October 19, 2021, station broadcaster Yossi Ben-Atar attacked Knesset member Shirley Pinto and hurled personal insults at her, a statement that sparked many reactions. The station issued an apology, and Ben-Atar was suspended from his position.