Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal is joining the chorus of condemnations of Israel’s “Muezzin Law” which would prevent mosques from using loudspeakers to broadcast the Muslim call to prayer from mosques across Israel.
In an interview on Sunday with the Turkish news agency Anadolu, Mashaal said that Israel's move is tantamount to "playing with fire", and already has been met with a strong response from the Palestinian people and the masses of the Islamic nation.
He claimed that Israel withdrew the bill due to the backlash against it and its fear that it will be a precedent for the prevention of Jewish religious ceremonies.
"The Palestinian anger sent the Israelis a message and a red line," said Mashaal. "There will be no stability in the region unless the Palestinian people obtain their rights and the occupation leaves."
Commenting on the victory of Donald Trump in the presidential elections in the United States, the Hamas leader said, "The American president, be it Trump or someone else, will discover the truth, and that is that Israeli stubbornness alone does not dictate reality." He called on Trump to change American foreign policy and not follow the path of his predecessors.
Mashaal’s comments about the “Muezzin Law” follow the Palestinian Authority leadership’s condemnation of the proposed law.
In a formal declaration on Saturday, the Palestinian National and Islamic Forces – an umbrella organization formed in 2000 which includes the various factions within the Palestinian Authority – condemned the “Muezzin Law” and warned that should it and the “Regulation Law” pass, they would constitute a declaration of war by Israel.
The draft bill has also sparked anger among Arab MKs, with MK Ahmed Tibi (Joint List) last week calling on the Arab public to disobey the law should it pass.
"I call on all my people to disobey this law until it reaches the third reading and is approved. We are also disturbed by the Friday and Saturday sirens (announcing the Shabbat), we too cannot travel on Yom Kippur and festivals because of you, but we don't speak about it, we don't protest," he said.