Israeli bill to restrict call to prayer passes preliminary parliament reading
An Israeli bill to restrict the adhan, the Muslim call to prayer, passed a preliminary reading in parliament on Wednesday.
Palestinians condemned the legislation as a "declaration of religious war" and an attack on freedom of worship.
The bill passed by 50 votes to 36 and must now be referred to a Knesset committee before returning for its first reading. It would then need to pass second and third readings before becoming law.
The legislation was introduced by Zvika Fogel, a lawmaker from National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir's party.
Under the proposal, mosques would be prohibited from installing or operating loudspeaker systems without a permit.
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Permits would be granted according to criteria set by the Israeli authorities, including noise levels, sound-reduction measures, a mosque's location, its proximity to residential areas and its impact on nearby residents.
Ben Gvir and Fogel argue the legislation is necessary because "noise" from the muezzin - the person who calls Muslims to prayer - constitutes a "public health concern".
'Describing the adhan as a 'noise problem' offends our religious beliefs, insults us as Muslims'
- Khaled Zabarqa, human rights lawyer
Palestinians reject that characterisation, saying it stigmatises a core religious practice and risks inflaming religious tensions.
"The campaign against the Adhan amounts to a declaration of war in every sense of the word," Khaled Zabarqa, a Lod-based human rights lawyer, told Middle East Eye.
"By justifying this proposed legislation, the Israeli government is laying the groundwork for a religious war within the country."
Zabarqa said the bill formed part of a broader effort to "Judaise public space" by removing non-Jewish religious symbols.
"That is why it is targeting both the adhan and minarets," he said. "Because they give the public sphere an Arab, Palestinian and Islamic identity."
If the bill eventually becomes law, its consequences would be "extremely serious", he added.
"We will not remain silent while our religious practices are targeted. Simply describing the adhan as a 'noise problem' offends our religious beliefs, insults us as Muslims and infringes on our freedom to worship God."
Implications for Al-Aqsa Mosque
The proposed legislation would also empower police to order the immediate shutdown of mosque loudspeakers if permit conditions are breached. Repeated violations could lead to the confiscation of sound equipment.
It would impose fines of up to 50,000 shekels (around $16,700) for operating loudspeakers without a permit and 10,000 shekels (around $3,300) for breaching permit conditions.
It remains unclear whether the legislation would apply to Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem, which is recognised internationally as occupied Palestinian territory despite its annexation by Israel in 1980.
The Palestinian Authority's Jerusalem Governorate condemned the bill and warned it could have serious implications for Al-Aqsa Mosque.
"The proposed law exposes the true nature of the occupying state as an apartheid system that uses its legislative tools to impose religious persecution," the governorate said.
Omar Rajoub, director of the Jerusalem Governorate's media office, said the bill was not an isolated measure or a genuine response to "noise pollution".
Instead, he said, it formed part of a broader policy targeting Palestinian religious expression and cultural identity.
"In Jerusalem in particular, the proposed legislation comes amid an unprecedented escalation in measures targeting the city's Islamic character," Rajoub told MEE.
"These include daily incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque, restrictions on worshippers, the removal of religious figures and mosque guardians, and increasing interference in the administration of Islamic religious affairs."
Rajoub added that the significance of the bill extended far beyond regulating loudspeakers or noise levels, arguing it would formalise direct intervention by the Israeli authorities in the affairs of mosques.
"This could pave the way for further raids and restrictions under the cover of legal authority," he said.
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