Confrontation on an open stage: After speeches, FIFA President Gianni Infantino wanted to get representatives of the Palestinian and Israeli associations to shake hands – and failed.
After the president of the Palestinian Association (PFA) and the vice-president of the Israeli Association (IFA) gave speeches at the FIFA Congress in Vancouver, Canada, Infantino invited both of them to the stage. It could have been a picture of reconciliation. It was an embarrassing moment, also for Infantino. The Palestinian association leader Jibril Rajoub, who is also NOC chief and secretary general of Fatah, refused to shake hands with an Israeli representative and started a discussion away from the microphones. In the end he just shook hands with Infantino and walked off the stage.
The FIFA boss smiled and called on both associations to work together. “As we know, these are very often complex matters.”said Infantino after both had left the stage a few meters apart. The hoped-for peace gesture failed.
Palestinian Association prefers Court of Arbitration for Sport
The PFA had previously announced that it would go to the International Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to challenge a decision by the FIFA Council. The appeal against the FIFA decision was filed on April 20th. “Our goal is not confrontation. Our goal is correction”said Rajoub about the association’s actions and warned of a precedent. “We are not asking FIFA to resolve a political conflict, we are asking to organize football”said Rajoub.
Vice President Basim Sheikh Suliman took the lectern on behalf of Israel’s association. He addressed the delegates of the 211 associations in Arabic, called for a compromise and emphasized that “that politics has no place in football”.
The background: Unlike the Palestinian association’s request for 2024, Israel’s football association was hardly sanctioned. The allegations included illegal gambling operations in the Israeli settlement areas in the West Bank. The IFA was fined for discriminatory actions by a club against Palestinian footballers.
However, the FIFA Council decided in March not to take any further steps, “since the final legal status of the West Bank under international law remains an unresolved and extremely complex factual issue”.
