Last week, the head of the Israeli Civil Administration in Judea and Samaria, Brig. Gen. Moti Almoz convened a meeting with an array of IDF technical experts to discuss the problem of electronically-amplified muezzin calls from mosques.
The five-times-daily muezzin call frequently precipitates complaints of noise pollution, as residents of nearby Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria can easily hear them, especially at night during regular sleep hours.
One proposed solution was the installation of a system in every mosque that would automatically lower the volume if it exceeded a preset decibel level. Almoz ordered his staff to investigate the systems’ feasibility.
Last month, Yisrael Beiteinu MK Anastassia Michaeli proposed a bill to ban the use of electronically-amplified muezzin calls entirely, asserting that “hundreds of thousands of Israelis” were suffering from the Muslim calls to prayer. Initially supported by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, the bill was shelved due to objections from within his own party.
