LONDON: Israeli lawmakers on Wednesday voted in a preliminary reading to approve a bill that will restrict the use and volume of mosque loudspeakers across the country, according to Palestine News Agency.
The bill requires three additional votes before it can be enacted into law. Knesset member Zvika Fogel, from the right-wing Otzma Yehudit party led by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, introduced the “muezzin bill,” which passed with 50 votes in favor and only 36 against in a preliminary vote.
The muezzin is an official who proclaims the call to the Islamic prayer five times a day, including the predawn Fajr prayer.
If the law is enacted, mosques will be required to obtain a permit to use loudspeakers, and those which do not comply may face a fine of 50,000 shekels (about $16,700). The police will have the authority to confiscate loudspeakers and issue fines of 10,000 shekels ($3,340) for repeated violations.
The bill received support from the opposition party Yisrael Beytenu, led by Avigdor Lieberman, as well as from the ultra-Orthodox party Shas, part of the government coalition.
