OIC condemns Israel's Muezzin Law as discriminatory and violating religious freedom.
OIC urges UN action against proposed Muezzin Law and related Israeli legislation.
Muezzin Law passed preliminary reading but requires further Knesset approval.
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has issued a condemnation of a bill passed in its preliminary reading by the Israeli Knesset that would ban the Muslim call to prayer, describing the legislation as discriminatory, racist and a direct violation of internationally guaranteed religious freedoms.
The OIC General Secretariat, in a statement released from Jeddah today, said the so-called Muezzin Law amounted to a legislative crime and a null and void measure that contravened the principles of international law and international human rights law. The body said any interference with the call to prayer represented a breach of obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other instruments that protect the right to practise religion without restriction or discrimination.
The OIC framed the bill not as an isolated move but as part of a wider pattern of Israeli decisions and legislation it said were aimed at restricting Palestinian presence and targeting Arab and Islamic identity. The statement described the draft law as a direct attack on the sanctity of religious rites and Islamic holy sites, and called it a dangerous escalation in that broader context.
The General Secretariat urged the international community, including the United Nations and its relevant bodies, to act urgently to halt what it described as Israeli occupation policies in contravention of international law. It called for the Muezzin Law and other legislation it deemed racist and unlawful to be repealed, and demanded that adequate measures be taken to protect freedom of worship and safeguard Islamic holy sites.
The OIC also called on international parties to hold Israel accountable for what it described as continuing violations of international law and resolutions of the international community.
Israel has not commented on the OIC statement. The Muezzin Law has been a recurring point of controversy in Israeli politics, with earlier versions of similar legislation having previously failed to advance. The bill passed only a preliminary reading in the Knesset and would need to clear several further stages before becoming law. Critics within Israel have also opposed such proposals in the past, arguing they undermine the country's democratic character and freedom of religion provisions.
