Europe’s football governing body —UEFA — posted the picture of one of Palestine’s greatest ever player who was killed by IDF snipers, while trying to get some food, days ago.
Given the degree to which most folks have become desensitized to the relentless genocide in Gaza, the expectation was that Suleiman al-Obeid’s killing would go unnoticed by most people.
But it did not escape Ballon d’or nominee —Mohammed Salah.
Liverpool’s greatest ever player, outraged by UEFA’s duplicitousness, fired a tweet which has gone viral several million times over, demanding the cause of death of the much loved former footballer.
And silence, as expected, was the response.
When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, leading sports and political figures were falling over themselves in condemnation of Vladimir Putin, wasting no time imposing economic sanctions and expelling the aggressor nation from European and global competitions.
But we have seen no such thing from FIFA, UEFA or any of the talking heads since the systematic killing of thousands of innocent women and children in Gaza.
What we have seen is Israeli football fans allowed to chant their anti-Arab songs across the continent with the authorities choosing to look the other way, while those who have displayed banners in support of Palestine have been threatened with censure and fines.
And this current situation is perfectly analogous to the circumstances which ultimately led to the banning of South Africa from partaking in international competitions for nearly three decades.
Press enter or click to view image in full size
Image screenshot via X.
Israel’s war crimes have been streamed on every social media platform since 2023 for everyone to see and it is somewhat strange that the rest of world are taking their time in clamouring for the expulsion of the white supremacist nation from the Olympics and other sporting competitions.
There will be those who take a contrary position to this writer as it relates to Israel and what’s happened since October 2023. They will point to the act of aggression from Hamas, which kicked everything off and their lack of scruples in using human shields.
But here is my riposte:
How many more children must die to convince UEFA, FIFA and the IOC to expel the ethno-fascist state from participating in every round of matches?
How many journalists and aid workers must be slaughtered to convince people that there is no other name for what’s happening in Palestine?
Aren’t we past the point of arguing that sports and politics should not mix?
The point here is that the rubicon has been crossed and we can no longer afford to be indifferent to the events in the Middle-East and now is as propitious as ever in rising up to reject zionism in all of its manifestations in the western political sphere.
Our survival is contingent on our movement.
This is my two cents, what’s yours?
