The FIFA Council has postponed making a decision on a Palestinian bid to suspend Israel from international football until October. The Palestine Football Association (PFA) had submitted a proposal in May to suspend Israel over its war on Gaza. FIFA had promised to address the issue at an extraordinary meeting in July, but has now delayed the review until October.
The PFA accuses the Israel Football Association (IFA) of complicity in violations of international law, discrimination against Arab players, and including clubs located in Palestinian territory in its league. The IFA has denied these allegations.
The PFA claims that at least 92 Palestinian players have been killed in the war, football infrastructure has been destroyed, leagues suspended, and the national team forced to play World Cup qualifiers abroad. They have requested FIFA to impose sanctions against Israeli teams.
The FIFA Council has received an independent legal assessment of the PFA’s proposals against Israel, which will be reviewed at the next meeting in October. The exact date of the meeting has not been disclosed.
Since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza in October, at least 40,691 people have been killed and 94,060 wounded. 1,139 people were killed in Israel during attacks led by Palestinian group Hamas. The situation remains tense, and both sides are waiting for FIFA’s decision on the suspension of Israel from international football.
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