The Cabinet agreed Sunday to close down Israel radio and television for 90 days, pending legislation that would allow the government-owned Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) to reorganize under new regulations with a reduced staff.
The proposal was introduced by Education Minister Yitzhak Navon in view of the strike by IBA journalists, now in its third week with no signs of a settlement. During the closure, legislation would be introduced in the Knesset to amend the broadcast law. About 600 of the 1,800 journalists and technicians now employed by the IBA would be dismissed and the several unions representing them would be reduced to a single work committee. The strikers have received no pay for the last two weeks.
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