Woman escorted from Florida meeting after playing prayer recording

Summarised from 3 outlets · 4 reports · Updated 30 Oct, 18:28 · Archive

A woman wearing a burka played a recording of the Islamic call to prayer at a Pinellas County commissioners meeting in Florida and was escorted out by a deputy.

A woman wearing a burka was escorted out of a Pinellas County commissioners meeting on Tuesday after she played a recording of the Islamic call to prayer during the public comment period. The Daily Mail identified her as Celine Al Jamal.

Al Jamal approached the podium dressed entirely in black, with only her left eye visible. Rather than making a verbal statement, she activated a recording of the Adhan, the Islamic call to prayer, which summons Muslims to perform their five daily prayers. The audio, featuring a flute and voice speaking in Arabic, played for nearly a minute.

Board Chairman Dave Eggers interrupted, telling her: 'Ma'am, you're going to have to stop … stop the music, stop the tape.' A fellow board member reminded her that the public comment period required speakers to address commissioners in their own voice rather than play pre-recorded audio. When she refused to comply, a Pinellas County Sheriff's Office deputy escorted her out of the meeting room and the building.

Her removal sparked immediate friction. Several audience members shouted and argued with Eggers over the decision. Eggers responded: 'Please. Just please exercise some decorum and kindness of your own. We're all people living together here.' He clarified the board's rules to the crowd: 'We don't allow taped things. You can record the meeting, but we don't allow taped activity like that. We ask you to come here and make comments, and that was not a comment.'

The outlets do not say whether her action was intended as a protest or a prank. The incident occurred during a public period where residents were addressing the board about the potential expansion of a local mosque, with some expressing concerns about its wording on zoning and agenda materials.

How it is being reported

• Woman in burka ejected from Florida mosque meeting for playing call to prayer recordingA woman wearing a burka was escorted out of a Pinellas County, Florida, commission meeting on October 27.New York Post · 30 Oct, 18:12
• Woman in burka escorted out of Florida public meeting about expanding local mosque after she took to podium and played Islamic call to prayerDuring nearly two hours of public testimony, the woman approached the podium dressed entirely in black, with a mesh screen concealing her face and only her left eye barely visible.Daily Mail · 29 Oct, 19:13
• Woman wearing burka escorted out of Florida county meeting after playing call to prayer recordingA woman wearing a burka was escorted out of a Florida county commissioners meeting on Tuesday after playing a recording of the Islamic call to prayer during the public comment period where residents spoke against the potential expansion of a local mosque amid concerns from some over its wording on zoning and agenda materials. The...New York Post · 29 Oct, 08:35
• Woman covered in veil escorted out of Florida county meeting after playing call to prayer recordingA veiled woman played an Islamic call to prayer recording at a Pinellas County commissioners meeting before a sheriff's deputy escorted her out.Fox News · 28 Oct, 20:53

In this story: Celine Al Jamal · Dave Eggers · Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners · Pinellas County · Florida

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log