West Asian Football Federation Calls on FIFA to Ban Genocidal Apartheid Israel From Football
There is no place in sports for apartheid. There is definitely no place in sports for genocide perpetrators. Sports teams, associations and federations must support the Palestinian call to #BanIsrael from sports until it ends its crimes against Palestinians.
We welcome the groundbreaking call of the 12-member West Asian Football Federation (WAFF) for FIFA to “isolat[e] the Israeli Football Association from all football-related activities” over Israel’s #GazaGenocide.
Israel has killed more than 27,000 Palestinians in occupied Gaza, including the Palestinian Olympic football coach, players, technical staff, referees, and officials. Israel has destroyed at least 70 percent of the civilian infrastructure in Gaza. Israel has destroyed multiple stadiums and the office of the Palestinian Olympic committee in Gaza.
The International Court of Justice has ruled that Israel is plausibly committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Palestinians and international human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, had previously found Israel guilty of the crime against humanity of apartheid.
Many WAFF members are also signatories to the UN Convention Against Apartheid in Sports, and are therefore acting on their obligation to “take all appropriate action to secure the expulsion of a country practicing apartheid from international and regional sports bodies."
There is no place in sports for apartheid. There is definitely no place in sports for genocide perpetrators.
We call on all sports teams, associations and federations to support the Palestinian call to pressure world sporting bodies to #BanIsrael until it ends its crimes against Palestinians, just as apartheid South Africa was banned.
