In a precedent inside the first parliament after the January 25 revolution, Salafī MP Mamdūh Ismā’īl stunned all fellow lawmakers when he recited the azān (Muslim call for prayers) for the ‘asr (afternoon) inside the People’s Assembly hall during debates.

Parliament Speaker Sa’d al-Katātnī interrupted the ultra-conservative legislator, who ignored Katātnī and went on with his azān. Katātnī, originally from the Muslim Brotherhood group, indignantly rebuked Ismā’īl, telling him that the parliament hall is not the place to call for prayers.