FIFA postpones decision on Palestinian request to suspend Israel from international football

World football’s governing body FIFA has postponed its decision on a Palestinian request to suspend Israel from international football due to the regime’s war crimes against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

In a statement on Friday, FIFA said that an independent legal assessment of the Palestinian Football Association’s proposals against the Israel Football Association would be presented to the FIFA Council by July 20, 2024.

“After both parties requested an extension to submit their respective positions and this was duly granted by FIFA, more time is required to complete this process with due diligence and completeness,” it added.

It was pointed out that the assessment would be submitted to the FIFA Council by 31 August at the latest for possible further decision.

During the 74th FIFA Annual Congress in Bangkok, Thailand in May, the Palestinian Football Association called on FIFA to suspend Israel because of the genocide committed by the regime in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian Football Association President Jibril Rajoub said Israel had “systematically” violated FIFA statutes on several occasions and called on Congress to vote on suspending the Israel Football Association from all football activities and respecting the Palestinian territory.

On 16 May, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) supported Palestine’s proposal to expel Israel from FIFA because of the regime’s criminal war in the Gaza Strip.

During the 34th AFC Congress, which concluded in Thailand’s capital Bangkok, the regional association’s president, Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, expressed his support for the application of the Palestinian Football Association (PFA).

Since 2014, the Palestinian Football Association has raised the possibility of suspending Israel at least five times. However, since October last year, when the Israeli regime began its new genocidal war against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip, the calls have become louder.

At least 38,848 Palestinians have been killed in the last nine months, most of them children and women. Among the victims are more than 250 athletes, including footballers.

In recent days, calls for Israel to be excluded from international sporting events have increased, including from human rights lawyers.

The hashtag “Red Card Israel” is trending on social media and a corresponding online campaign has collected over 4.2 million signatures.