Israeli party attempts to ban Muslim call to prayer in Jaffa

Israel’s Likud-Beiteinu Party in the Tel Aviv-Jaffa municipality has launched a campaign to silence the Muslim call to prayer in Jaffa by enforcing “noise pollution” laws against mosques.

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On Wednesday the website of the Maariv newspaper quoted Arnon Giladi, the chairperson of the party’s local branch, as saying that in the past few years Jaffa has been “occupied” by Islamist movements and the radical left who are trying to separate Jaffa from Israel as well as detach it from Tel Aviv through activities that are masked as religious and educational.

“We will act to correct this situation and crystallize a national plan that will guarantee that Jaffa remains a part of the State of Israel and will also have a Jewish character,” he said.

“It is unacceptable that an autonomous Palestinian national entity exists just a few kilometres from downtown Tel Aviv, detached from the State of Israel’s values.”

“Likud Beiteinu has decided to bring the issue into public awareness,” stated a post on the party’s official blog, “because during the recent Yom Kippur holiday and throughout the Tishrei month of holidays, complaints were lodged by Jewish residents about [the Muslim call to prayer] having violated the sanctity of the holidays in an organized manner, solely in order to rile up the atmosphere and violate the life of Jews living in Jaffa.”