“Israeli football ban”: UEFA scientists urge Israel to prevent the horrors of Gaza Israeli conflict news

More than 30 legal experts called on the European Football Associations Union (UEFA) to ban Israel and its clubs from competitions for atrocities in Gaza.

The letter addressed to the UEFA president Alexander Severin on Thursday said that the Banging Israel was “necessary”, citing a report from the United Nations investigators confirming that Israel is implementing a genocide. Against the Palestinians.

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He urged the governing body of football and its members to “fulfill their legal and moral obligations to support international law, and to move forward with an immediate and full Israeli football ban.”

The message shed light on the damage that Israel causes to sport in Gaza. at least 421 Palestinian football players They have been killed since Israel began its military attack in October 2023, and the message indicated that the campaign to bomb Israel “systematically destroy the football infrastructure in Gaza.”

“These actions have jumped a whole generation of athletes, which led to the erosion of the fabric of Palestinian sport.”

“The failure of the Football Association in Israel (IFA) to challenge these violations is involved in this system, which makes its participation in European Union competitions cannot be defended.”

Among the signers of the speech is Elisa von Guiden Forge, the Executive Director of the Limkin Institute for the Prevention of genocide, as well as many former United Nations experts and scientists in international law.

The statement said: “The European Football Confederation should not be complicit in washing sport such flagrant violations of international law, including, but not limited to the law of genocide,” the statement said.

It comes amid an increased international anger at the brutal attack of Israel on Gaza, as the Israeli army killed more than 66,000 people and turned most of the pocket into ruins.

It also sparked the siege on humanitarian aid in the region Deadly hungerThis leads to the declaration of famine in August for more than half a million people in Gaza.

Fast action against Russia

Craig Mokper, the former director of the New York Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that allowing a country committed to genocide to participate in sport allows “normalization”. This, in turn, “a business that corresponds to.”

“We remember well the situation in the apartheid in South Africa, where the world’s unification to isolate the regime in order to change its behavior, which included – it is very important – sports provinces and cultural provinces,” Mukbir said to the island.

The FIFA Football Association was suspended in 1961 due to the country’s racist system. This step was considered a historic victory for the global movement to end violence and separation.

Recently, in 2022, FIFA and UEFA Russia suspended Within days of its launch, Ukraine is widespread.

“It is an amazing level of hypocrisy and double standards, whose reaction was very quickly and strongly regarding Russia because of its invasion of Ukraine, yet they were conducting their feet in an attempt to avoid working when it came to the complete genocide by a system that was adopted Practice apartheidMokhiber said.

Palestinian rights advocates called for a ban on international football competitions for decades, partly due to the fact that Israel has professional teams based in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.

FIFA rules stipulate unambiguously that “member societies and their clubs may not play on the lands of another member association without the latter’s approval.”

However, Israel and national teams continue to participate in international competitions through FIFA and UEFA.

Although Israel is based in West Asia, Israel joined UEFA in 1994 amid the boycott of Arab and Muslim in its teams.

An increasing batch to ban Israel

With the continued attacks on Gaza, the Israeli national team participates in the European World Cup qualifiers, and competes with its clubs in the continental European Union championships, where Maccabi Tel Aviv appeared in the European League this season.

But he calls for rejecting Israel from world football, which has gained momentum in recent months.

Football lovers From Glasgow To Paris to Rome to Bilbao, the Palestinian flags were flying to show solidarity with Gaza, despite the restrictions imposed on such offers.

After Israel killed the legend of Palestinian football Soleman Al-Obeid In an air strike in August, there were also calls to end violence.

One of these calls came from the European Union itself. Al -Ittihad posted the image of the late football player on the social media platform X with the comment: “Farewell to Suleiman Al -Obid,” Palestinian Pele. “

But Liverpool Star Muhammad is wrong UEFA criticized his failure to mention who killed him. “Can you tell us how he died, where, and why?” Salah wrote in a response.

A few days later, the before the match was distinguished by the European Football Association Cup, pointing out: “He stopped killing civilians. He stopped killing children.”

UEFA also included two Palestinian refugee children at the medal ceremony.

According to multiple news reports from Europe, UEFA would have voted to suspend Israel soon, but this step was postponed after the President of the United States Donald Trump She issued a ceasefire plan for Gaza.

A speech on Thursday warned that Trump’s proposal does not excuse his union from his responsibility to ban Israel.

“This is because, although the plan aims to present a path of peace, it actually undermines international law, Palestinian sovereignty, and the principles of self -determination.”

“It does not impose any obligations on the state of Israel, like Occupation force In Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. He also failed to address the legal consequences of the genocide in Gaza or to provide any demands from Israel to provide compensation to the Palestinians. Peace cannot be achieved without justice and accountability. “

Non -profit human rights weigh

On Wednesday, Amnesty International also called on FIFA and UEFA to suspend Israel.

“While the national football team in Israel is preparing with the World Cup qualifiers against Norway and Italy, Israel continues to commit genocide against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip,” said Agynis Callamard, president of the group, in a statement.

At the same time, Israel expands the brutality of its illegal settlements and gives legitimacy to it Illegal settlement foci In the West Bank as part of its illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories. “

Since the outbreak of the war on Gaza, no country or club in Europe has withdrawn directly in protest against a match against Israeli teams despite the increasing international calls to avoid the country.

Boycotting a match against Israel would give Israel an automatic 3-0 victory.

Ashish Barrar – a campaign director in the game on Israel, highlighted the group that helped organize a speech on Thursday – the role of football in building a global society, as it is the most popular sport in the world to a large extent.

“Culture is the way to normalize this in a more valuable way for the genocide perpetrators than having a seat At the United NationsPrahar said from the island.

“Therefore, it is necessary to follow the model that was presented in front of us with the apartheid in South Africa, from removing Israel from culture, but specifically sports and starting football.”

The game leads to Israel a media campaign confirming the genocide in Gaza and calling for boycotting football in the country.

Last month, the group sponsored an advertising plate in the loud Times Square in New York City, which says: “Israel is committing genocide. Football federations: boycotting Israel.”

“FIFA cannot solve geopolitical problems”

The United States, the Israeli ally, is participating in hosting the World Cup next year, and Trump President with FIFA President Gianni Infantino.

In light of the warm relationship of the leaders, Prashar said it is not optimistic that the International Federation will step against Israel. But he added that individual countries can force FIFA if they announce to boycotting Israel.

On Thursday, Infantino suggested that FIFA is not ready to punish the US ally.

“FIFA cannot solve geopolitical problems, but it can enhance football all over the world by harnessing its unified, educational, cultural and human values,” he said in a statement.

Mokber, a former United Nations expert, said that football should gather people around positive values, not throughout a country that commits genocide.

“We know very well how near Infantino is Donald TrumpMokhiber said. I would like to ask him to look at his history books and see that the ban and provinces in football were part of FIFA from the beginning. “

Prashar also referred to historical precedents and interrogated where FIFA will draw the line.

“Gianni Infantino normalizes the genocide,” he told Al -Jazeera Island. “Was Nazi Germany allowed to play while committing genocide? This is the question that I will ask.”

FIFA and UEFA did not respond to the island’s request to comment on the time of publication.