by As the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli bombs in Gaza continues to rise – and amid reports that “pockets of famine” have begun to emerge in the territory – there seem to be few ways they can protect themselves. One way could be through something that unites the world: sport.
On New Year’s Eve, the Jordanian Football Association (JFA) issued a statement calling on the global sports community to “take decisive action to stop the aggression against Palestine in Gaza and the occupied territories.”
The statement called for severe sanctions on Israeli sports associations in an attempt to isolate it from international sports. This would exclude Israeli teams, clubs, players, and representatives from participating in international competitions “until the occupied state complies with the international ceasefire demands.”
“The blatant disregard for moral and humanitarian laws has transformed the football facilities in Gaza into sites of harm, humiliation and abuse for innocent civilians and children that stray from their intended purpose as spaces of joy and hope,” the statement read. “Silence in their critical circumstances could be seen as an implicit endorsement of the illegal practices of the profession, parties that could be involved in these major disasters.”
The JFA’s statement came just days after disturbing footage emerged showing Israeli troops turning the Yarmouk Stadium – one of Palestine’s oldest sports facilities – into a makeshift internment camp for Palestinian detainees. Thousands of men, women and children were rounded up, stripped to their underwear, with stakes and armed soldiers and tanks surrounding the field.
The Palestine Football Association (PFA) also announced that it had sent letters to the International Olympic Committee and FIFA demanding “an urgent international investigation into career crimes against sports and athletes in Palestine”.
“In the latest example of Israeli fascism, the occupation showed us horrific images during its invasion of Yarmouk State in the Gaza Strip, and turned it into a detention center where it abused and interrogated our people,” the PFA.
“This blatant and scandalous violation of all covenants is compounded by a long series of violations against Palestinian sports, including the killing and arrest of players. This is a crime that cannot be tolerated, silenced and ignored by international sports institutions.”
Calls for Israel to be expelled from international sports are nothing new. For example, the Boycott Divestment Sanctions (BDS) movement has long (and unsuccessfully) advocated the expulsion or suspension of Israel’s football association for hosting FIFA-sanctioned matches in Israeli settlements in the Bank West – territory that was under Israeli military occupation. since 1967.
The renewed calls for sanctions are in response to the ongoing war on Gaza, which has devastated the strip, including its rich sports movement, one of the few areas where Palestinians can find joy in their daily lives.
According to the latest figures from the Gaza health ministry, Israeli forces have killed at least 23,500 Palestinians and wounded another 57,305 in Gaza since the start of the conflict, which happened when Hamas launched an attack on Israel that killed more than 1,000 people. At least 85 Palestinian athletes, including 55 footballers, have been killed since the start of the war, the PFA confirmed in a recent report cataloging Israeli sports violations. The figures included 18 children and 37 teenagers. Since then, more names have been added to the list, including Hani Al-Masry, former football player and general manager of the Palestinian national Olympic team.
Meanwhile, more than 300 Palestinians were killed in the West Bank, including 79 children. Over 2,550 Palestinians have also been detained in the occupied territory since October 7 and other local residents have been subjected to ill-treatment and abuse by Israeli soldiers, as well as restrictions on movement in the form of checkpoints.
The ongoing restrictions could be seen as a violation of the Olympic Charter, which states that “the exercise of sport is a human right.”
According to the charter, “everyone must have access to the practice of sport, without discrimination of any kind regarding internationally recognized human rights within the remit of the Olympic Movement.” The document asserts that these rights and freedoms should be achieved “without discrimination of any kind” and that “the Olympic Charter relating to the Olympic Movement needs to be fulfilled.”
FIFA president Gianni Infantino wrote to the Israeli and Palestinian Football Associations in October expressing his condolences over the “horrific violence” that was taking place. However, FIFA and the IOC have avoided issuing statements denouncing Israel’s ongoing war and the ensuing humanitarian crisis – a decision that stands in stark contrast to their handling of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The contrast in how the world of sport has treated each conflict is striking. Immediately after the invasion in February 2022, the world’s greatest nation became a pariah in the world of sports. Russian national soccer teams and clubs have been banned from international competition, including the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The International Paralympic Committee barred athletes from Russia and Belarus on the eve of the Paralympic Games in Beijing, and several international federations also took steps to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competition.
On 5 October 2023 – just before the start of the war between Israel and Gaza – the IOC suspended the Russian Olympic Committee following Moscow’s decision to absorb sports organizations in four occupied territories in Ukraine. The IOC statement describes Russia’s actions as a “violation of the Olympic charter.”
The IOC has decided to ban athletes from Russia and Belarus who have military contracts. It is noteworthy that the IOC has supported the inclusion of Israeli athletes in the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, despite the fact that some participating athletes are acting as active members of the Israeli Defense Forces.
The IOC is under increasing pressure over Israel’s war on Gaza. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared the organization’s contrasting approach “outrageous” and an example of the IOC’s “bias and incompetence”. Olympic officials responded by claiming that the two conflicts could not be compared.
“This is a unique situation and cannot be compared to any other war or conflict in the world, because the measures taken and the recommendations made by the IOC as a result of the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian army in Beijing with during the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. 2022,” said an IOC spokesperson in November 2023.
However, the IOC and Fifa’s responses to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine raise questions about the lack of similar actions taken against Israel amid the ongoing bombing of Gaza. This inconsistency in the handling of international conflicts shows a worrying double standard that undermines the credibility of these sports organizations. This discrepancy not only undermines the principles of fairness and equality but casts doubt on the integrity and impartiality of these global sports bodies.
Furthermore, the stark difference in how the IOC and Fifa treat Israel and Russia sends a troubling message about the perceived value of human rights and dignity, particularly in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. By refraining from applying the same standards to Israel as they did to Russia, these sports organizations seem to imply that Palestine, as a member state and participant in major international events, does not deserve the same level of sympathy , dignity, or commitment. necessary to uphold their basic human rights.
