A WhatsApp post which claimed that Israel recently proposed a bill to criminalize Christianity in the Middle-East country has been circulating widely.
The post was shared alongside a Newsmax news footage which reported that the alleged bill by Israeli lawmakers aims ‘to ban Christian proselytisation.’
The caption on the post read:
“Israel has proposed a bill to criminalize Christianity in the country.
These are the people Christians are supporting their genocidal activities in Palestine”.
Similarly, an X user, @KawuGarba, also posted the same footage on April 21, 2024, with the same caption.
The post has garnered over 180,000 views, with more than 1,700 likes and over 1,300 reposts as of April 26, 2024.
CLAIM
Israel proposed a bill to ban Christianity recently.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is MISLEADING, as the video is over a year old.
A thorough search on the YouTube channel of the media platform (Newsmax) showed that the video was posted on March 20, 2023.
Further checks showed that two Israeli lawmakers had proposed a bill outlawing Christian proselytisation in January 2023, but it neither scale through the Israeli parliament nor was it signed into law by the nation’s Executive arm of government.
Notable news media including Punch and Associated Press (AP) reported the story in 2023 as seen here, here, and here.
Also, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared a post on X on March 22, 2023, saying: “We will not advance any law against the Christian community.”
THE VERDICT
The claim that Israel proposed a bill to ban Christianity recently is MISLEADING; the news footage is an old video and is likely being shared for propaganda purposes.
Amala is a tactical Fact-Checker, who is passionate about using Fact-checking to curb the spread of Misinformation and Disinformation which has become prevalent in the media space. She can be reached on X at muonweblessing and LinkedIn on Amala Blessing Muonwe
