Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who also holds the position of communications minister, instructed the director-general of the Communications Ministry to work to shut down a new TV station called "Palestine '48," only hours before the Palestinian Authority-funded station is to go online on Thursday.

Netanyahu instructed the Communications Ministry and its enforcement branches to begin an immediate assessment of the Nazareth-based station's legality, Ynet reported on Thursday.

The prime minister ordered the ministry to take any and all action within its purview, both criminal and bureaucratic, to stop the broadcasts. One of the main elements of the ministry's investigation will be the legality of the Palestinian Authorities' funding of the station.

The channel, which airs on Palestinian television, enlists the services of a production company in northern Israel, and its broadcasts will be received via satellite dishes, which are popular among the Arab sector.