Muslims Angered by Israeli Bill to Limit Loudness of Mosques’ Calls to Prayer

To non-Muslims, a bill before the Israeli parliament that limits the loudness of the electronically-amplified calls to prayer heard five times each day – and night – is a quality-of-life and environmental issue, no different than any other ordinance aimed at controlling noise pollution. To Muslims, the proposed regulations constitute a stark infringement on religious freedom – a position shared by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has now weighed-in on the matter. Erdogan’s deputy prime minister said on Monday that the limitation of calls to prayer is an “unacceptable” divergence from Israel’s multi-religious culture. Some, however, point to the prohibition against non-Muslims praying on the Temple Mount – and, in fact, facing arrest if they do – as precedent for limiting religious practice more basic to a religion than the issue of how many decibels constitutes a nuisance. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has threatened to take the issue to the UN Security Council and other international organizations and Jordan, which Israel named as custodian of Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem, issued a stern rebuke of the Israeli action.