Follow live the latest news on the conflict between Israel and Palestine
ISTANBUL (Türkiye), Oct. 21 (dpa/EP) –
Two Israeli players from Antalyaspor, a Turkish Super League team, refused to play a match this Saturday in protest of a ceremony honoring Palestinians killed during Israeli airstrikes on Gaza, the club and local media reported.
Israeli internationals Ramzi Safuri and Sagiv Jehezkel, from Antalyaspor, will not play against Gaziantepspor this Saturday due to the planned ceremony, a club spokesperson confirmed to the German agency dpa. The club, coached by former Borussia Dortmund midfielder Nuri Sahin, will make a statement this Saturday, the spokesperson said.
The Turkish Football Federation announced on Thursday a minute of silence at this weekend’s matches for civilians killed in the war. Players will also wear black armbands and a banner in solidarity with Gaza. Türkiye called three days of national mourning for Gaza on Wednesday.
Jehezkel and Safuri have been playing for Antalyaspor since September. Local media outlets, including the Hürriyet newspaper, quoted the two players as saying that they “will not participate in this ceremony or go to the stadium.” “The bad news coming from the country has made playing football for us an almost impossible task,” they indicated.
The Islamist movement Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, unleashed a large-scale attack on Israel about two weeks ago, targeting civilian communities and a music festival.
Israel responded to the attack with an intense bombardment of the Gaza Strip and has also imposed a tight blockade on Gaza and prevented the entry of food, medicine and fuel, prompting dire warnings about the conditions faced by civilians in the impoverished territory.