INTERNATIONAL footballing authorities have been urged to ban Israel from the World Cup and other worldwide competitions after the murder of a high-profile Palestinian footballer.
The MSP has tabled a motion in the Scottish Parliament urging Fifa and Uefa to suspend Israel after the killing of Suleiman al-Obeid, known as the “Palestinian Pele”.
The talented footballer was killed by an Israeli airstrike while waiting for food in the southern Gaza Strip last week.
Greer’s motion “notes with distress the reports that over 400 Palestinian footballers have been killed by Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza since 2023”.
It adds that Uefa and Fifa must “suspend Israeli national teams and clubs from all international football competitions, including the world cup, until the occupation of Palestine is ended”.
Uefa’s reaction to the news of al-Obeid ‘s death sparked anger, after a 21-word statement failed to mention the circumstances in which he was killed, with Liverpool star Mohamed Salah responding: “Can you tell us how he died, where, and why?”
al-Obeid began his footballing career at Khadamat al-Shati, later playing for Markaz Shabab al-Am’ari in the occupied West Bank and then Gaza Sport.
He was capped 24 times for the Palestinian national team after debuting in 2007 and scored twice.
Over his career, he scored more than 100 goals, most notably with a scissor kick against Yemen during the 2010 West Asian Football Federation championship.
According to the Palestine Football Association, Israel has destroyed or damaged 288 sports facilities across Gaza and the West Bank, including stadiums, training grounds and gyms as well as the organisation’s headquarters.
More than 1300 Palestinians have been killed collecting food from the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation since its launch in May.
Uefa and Fifa were approached for comment.
