Is blasphemy illegal in Israel?
Criminal offense
Israel has blasphemy laws under Articles 170 and 173 of the penal code, with imprisonment penalties for insulting religion, though rarely enforced.
Israel is one of 40 countries classified “Criminal offense” for blasphemy — 70% of the 57 with data.
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Blasphemy law
- Last checked
- 7 July 2026
- How it was classified
- Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.
Nearby countries
- Palestine
- Criminal offense Palestine criminalizes blasphemy under civil and military law, with cases like Al-Husseini's prosecution.
- Jordan
- Criminal offense Jordan's Penal Code criminalizes scorning prophets with up to three years imprisonment, and insulting religious feelings.
- Cyprus
- Criminal offense Cyprus criminalizes "wounding religious feelings" and insulting religions with imprisonment or fines.
- Egypt
- Criminal offense Egypt's blasphemy laws carry imprisonment and fines, with penalties for insulting religious beliefs under Article 98(f) of the Penal Code.
- Turkey
- Criminal offense Turkey criminalizes blasphemy under Article 216 of the Penal Code with imprisonment.
- Saudi Arabia
- Death penalty possible Saudi Arabia prescribes death penalty for blasphemy under Sharia law.
Other laws in Israel
- Holocaust Denial
- Criminal offense
- Flag Desecration
- Criminal offense
- Conversion Therapy
- Partial ban
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.