Israel’s Ben Gvir pushes bill to ban Islamic call to prayer Submitted by Lubna Masarwa on Sun, 12/28/2025 - 13:58 Draft law would allow police to shut down mosque loudspeakers and impose heavy fines, which Palestinians say target their identity The 18th-century Ottoman-period al-Jazzar Mosque, also known as the 'White Mosque', is pictured in the old walled town of Acre in northern Israel on 1 October 2024 (AFP/Ahmad Gharabli) Off Israeli minister Itamar Ben Gvir’s party is advancing new legislation to restrict the Islamic call to prayer in mosques. In a statement issued on Sunday, the Jewish Power party said it was working on a bill that would ban the call to prayer unless it is licensed by the state. Approval would depend on criteria set by the authorities, including volume levels, noise-reduction measures, a mosque’s location, its proximity to residential areas and the impact on nearby residents. The draft law was submitted by National Security Committee chair Zvika Fogel and seeks to curb what he described as the “unreasonable noise” of the muezzin, the person who calls Muslims to prayer. Palestinian citizens of Israel have condemned the proposed bill, rejecting claims that mosque calls to prayer constitute a noise problem. They say the legislation is another manifestation of the Israeli government’s push to erase Palestinian religious and cultural identity. “This is not about noise. The call to prayer is not noise,” Khaled Zabarqa, a Lod-based human rights lawyer and activist, told Middle East Eye. “The call to prayer has existed for hundreds of years and has been recited daily since Israel was established. It did not suddenly become a noise problem,” he said. How Zionism is fuelling a religious war over al-Aqsa Mosque Read More » Instead, Zabarqa argued, the bill forms part of a broader effort to Judaise public space across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories by removing symbols of non-Jewish identity. “The call to prayer is a symbol of the religious and national identity of Palestinians inside Israel,” he said. “It reminds them, and the world, that this land has an identity with deep roots, history and civilisation.” Under the proposal, police officers could order the immediate shutdown of loudspeakers if the conditions are breached. Continued violations would allow officers to confiscate the equipment. The penalties outlined in the bill are steep. Installing or operating loudspeakers without a permit would carry a fine of 50,000 shekels ($15,660). Violating permit conditions would result in a 10,000-shekel ($3,100) fine. 'Religious fanaticism' In its explanatory note, the Jewish Power party described noise from mosques as a “health hazard” and claimed existing laws do not provide sufficient tools to address the issue. Efforts to restrict or ban the Muslim call to prayer in Israel are not new. In 2017, a similar bill seeking to ban the use of loudspeakers for the call to prayer passed a first reading in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, but was never enacted. Last year, Ben Gvir instructed police to prevent mosques from broadcasting the call to prayer, saying it “disturbs” Jewish residents. Commenting on the latest draft bill, Ben Gvir said the call to prayer was, in many areas, “unreasonable noise” that harms residents’ health and quality of life. “This is a phenomenon that cannot be accepted,” he said, adding that the legislation would grant police powers they currently lack. 'The assault on mosques... constitutes a direct confrontation with the beliefs of our people' - Sheikh Kamal Khatib, Palestinian imam Fogel echoed those remarks. “A muezzin using an unusually loud volume is not a religious issue,” he said. “It is a matter of public health and quality of life. Residents cannot continue to suffer from systematic legal violations.” Kamal al-Khatib, former deputy head of the now-banned Islamic Movement in Israel, said that despite repeated past attempts to restrict the call to prayer, the current proposal is particularly dangerous because it seeks to enshrine the ban in law. Khatib, who is also an imam at a mosque in his hometown of Kafr Kanna, described the move as another chapter in what he called a religious war against Muslims in Israel. “This comes amid a wave of religious fanaticism that has swept Israeli society,” he told MEE. “Ben Gvir is nothing more than one manifestation of this fanaticism. The assault on mosques - whether through restricting the call to prayer, banning it altogether, or imposing heavy fines - constitutes a direct confrontation with the beliefs of our people.” He said any restriction on the call to prayer must be categorically rejected. “The call to prayer is a religious rite that existed before Ben Gvir and before [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, and it will remain after them, God willing,” he added. 48 Palestinians Jerusalem News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0