German court ends ban on call to prayer at local mosque

BERLIN

A German court in the western city of Munster on Wednesday has given permission to a local mosque to perform the call for prayer -- or adhan -- saying it is “religious freedom”.

The rule followed a prior court decision in 2018 after a Christian couple living 900 meters (2,952 feet) from the mosque made a complaint about adhan, saying it intruded on their religious freedom.

The court in Munster did not agree with the previous decision in 2018 that the call to prayer violated the religious freedom of those who heard it.

The call to prayer is not an imposition that all people need to obey, the judge said.

*Writing by Rabia Iclal Turan in Ankara