https:\/\/nonviolenceinternational.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/Combined-Exec.-Summary-and-Final-Report.docx<\/p>\n
Israel Hinders Football in Occupied Palestine: 2008-2014
\nBy Nonviolence International and Palestine Football Association
\nAuthor: Mariabruna Jennings
\nEditors: Jonathan Kuttab, Susan Shalabi-Molano<\/p>\n
June 10, 2014<\/p>\n
Table of Contents<\/p>\n
Executive Summary………………………………………………………………………………………………………..3
\nInfrastructure………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 6
\nZoning Ordeals…………………………………………………………………………………………………… 6
\nCases of Active Israeli Intervention………………………………………………………………………. 7
\nRestrictions of Movement………………………………………………………………………………………………..8
\nPre-FIFA Mechanism……………………………………………………………………………………………8
\nPost-FIFA Mechanism………………………………………………………………………………………… 23
\nHindering Shipments of Donated Sports Equipment………………………………………………………….. 28
\nPolitical Intervention……………………………………………………………………………………………………… 29
\nHuman Rights Violations……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 30
\nReferences……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 32
\nAppendix……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 33<\/p>\n
Executive Summary: Israel Hinders Football in Occupied Palestine
\nBy Nonviolence International and the Palestine Football Association: June 10, 2014
\nPalestine Football Association (PFA). a non-governmental entity, and many of those involved in it are the victims of systemic acts of violence and other practices carried out by the Israeli Army to stifle the sport. The PFA suffers from 5 Israeli imposed practices which are enumerated in this report. Although FIFA took measures to end two of these practices, (obstacles to movement and receipt of equipment) pursuant to FIFA Circular no. 1385 these measures have been largely ineffective due to Israeli non-compliance. The PFA and Nonviolence International demand that that FIFA take corrective action.
\nINFRASTRUCTURE:
\nThe Israeli Occupation leaves the vast majority of Palestinian land under Israeli influence or control, where permits for new stadia are almost never granted. Furthermore, active intervention by Israeli forces inhibits the operation of existing football pitches and stadia.
\nEXAMPLES OF ISRAELI INTERVENTION
\n\uf0d8 Halting construction of artificial turf pitches in Burin, Beit Ummar, and Beit Foreeq in 2010
\n\uf0d8 Halting of the building of a grass pitch in Beit Leqya under zoning pretenses.
\n\uf0d8 Halting of construction of the Sa\u2019as Sayel Stadium due to alleged \u2018security reasons\u2019
\n\uf0d8 Halting of the Beit Ummar Stadium due to \u2018security reasons\u2019: proximity to Road #60
\n\uf0d8 Halting of Majed Asaad Stadium in Al-Bireh due to alleged \u2018security reasons\u2019: cheering spectators
\n\uf0d8 Bombing of Palestine Stadium in Gaza in 2012
\n\uf0d8 Halting of a children\u2019s match at the Al-Zaitun pitch in 2013 before shutting down operations indefinitely
\nFREEDOM OF MOVEMENT:
\nIsraeli authorities not only inhibit the Palestine National Team from convening as a single entity but also impede foreign football delegations\u2019 entry into the West Bank, greatly diminishing the development of football within Palestine.
\nIMPEDIMENTS TO GAZANS: ANECDOTAL EVIDENCE OF ISRAELI POLICY
\nThe Palestinian National Team faces difficulties when uniting players from Gaza and the West Bank, as Israeli authorities seldom issue these athletes and officials permits, stifling their professional development. This policy adversely impacts Palestinian football teams, inhibiting them from practicing and competing together. A right enjoyed by any other football team regardless of a player\u2019s origin, it is denied to football under the Occupation. As Illustrated below, Israel authorities continue inhibiting movement within Palestine in stark contravention of FIFA Circular no, 1385.<\/p>\n
\uf0d8 16 U14 footballers prohibited from entering the West Bank to train with the national team (February 2013)
\n\uf0d8 5 PFA members delayed from entering Palestine for the AFC U19 Men\u2019s Qualifiers (October 2013)
\n\uf0d8 7 members of the PFA, POC, and media were prohibited from participating in Youth Week, including Mr. Amassi,, a high-ranking official (November 2013)
\n\uf0d8 3 National Team players prohibited from joining the team for the WAFF 8th Men\u2019s Championship (December 2013)
\nPREVENTION THROUGH PROCEDURAL DELAYS
\nIsraeli authorities are wont to prolong the permit obtaining process for foreign sporting delegations, forcing applicants to wait oftentimes between 3 days to 3 months for their confirmation to enter Palestine. Permits are sometimes granted after or in the midst of the scheduled affair, curtailing the Palestinian teams ability to interact with other football teams, and diminishing opportunities for football development in Palestine. Whilst official Israeli documents claim that most permits were approved, these statistics are
\nmisleading because, although approved, permits are often delayed such that individuals can no longer complete their tasks in Palestine regardless of their acceptance into the territory.<\/p>\n
\uf0d8 2 players of the Myanmar Women\u2019s team were delayed for hours because they both used a different passport from the ones originally submitted to the PFA. Although their permits were later prepared, they could not play the scheduled match because of the physical and mental exhaustion caused by the ordeal (May 2013)
\n\uf0d8 Iraqi children\u2019s team was detained in their vehicle for hours attempting to cross Allenby Bridge. Initially, the entire Iraqi delegation of 38 individuals was prohibited from crossing into Palestine; however, the authorities allowed the team\u2014save 5 people\u2014entry but only a few days following the commencement of the tournament (August 2013)
\n\uf0d8 13 staff members, 6 members of the Jordanian team, 10 members of the UAE team were rejected one day before the competition, prompting the PFA to contact international football institutions such as the FIFA and UEFA. After pressure from the international football community, the Israeli authorities permitted most of the individuals. Successive delays resulted in most visitors\u2019 entering 3 days already into the competition. (August 2013)
\n\uf0d8 4 members of the Bahraini team and 2 members of the Omani team were delayed entry for the AFC U19 Men\u2019s Qualifiers: 1 of the Omani team members was refused due to a supposedly invalid passport, and though the 4 Bahraini permits were processed, they were delayed a few days due to the alleged absence of a typist to complete the permits (October 2013)
\n\uf0d8 Member of EDELGRASS subcontracting group delayed. Although Israeli documents claim the application was approved, the permit was passed forth to the Palestinian Civil Ministry, causing the entire official FIFA development mission to fail, as the permits of the other 4 inspectors expired. (November 2013)
\nHINDERING SHIPMENTS OF DONATED SPORTS EQUIPMENT:
\nFor most other nations attempting to foster football, shipments of donated goods from FIFA and other football institutions are received in a timely fashion and without additional charges. This is not the case for football under Israeli Occupation, where shipments are either never cleared or intentionally delayed to such an extent that the additionally accrued costs are outside of the PFA\u2019s pecuniary means, making it nearly impossible to retrieve the necessary football equipment.
\nEXAMPLES OF ISRAELI IMPEDIMENTS
\n\uf0d8 2008 shipment of Adidas goods destroyed
\n\uf0d8 2010 shipment of referee equipment blocked at Tel Aviv airport and has not been cleared to this date
\n\uf0d8 2010 UEFA shipment of youth equipment \u2018mistakenly\u2019 stored in a large bin, incurring storage costs of over 15,000 USD
\nPOLITICAL INTERVENTION:
\nThe Israeli Authorities have actively worked to dissuade foreign nations from sending their football delegations to Palestine. This gambit utilised by the Israeli authorities curtails Palestinian football by political means.
\nCASES OF ISRAELI INTERVENTION
\n\uf0d8 2009 hosting of Brazilian Flamengo and Corinthians teams cancelled due to \u2018financial problems\u2019 which Israelis indicated could only be solved if they agreed to a joint match with the Israelis
\n\uf0d8 2011 friendly match with Zambia cancelled: Zambian Football Association \u201cadvised by the Government not to proceed\u201d after Israeli political pressure
\n\uf0d8 2011 friendly match with Gambia cancelled due to supposed \u201clogistical constraints\u201d
\n\uf0d8 2011 friendly match with Central African Republic cancelled: US interference on behalf of Israel aided in this cancellation<\/p>\n
HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS:
\nCases of human rights violations are rife within the context of Palestinian football\u2014affecting men, women, and children. Characterised by the systemic violence with which the IDF seek to intervene in Palestinians\u2019 attempts to foster football, the following cases illustrate the damages wrought by the Israeli forces.
\nSAMPLE CASES OF ISRAELI VIOLATIONS
\n\uf0d8 Mahmoud Kamel Mohammad Sarsak: incarcerated without a trial while en route from his native Gaza to the West Bank to meet his Markaz Balata football club. He was interrogated for 30 days and his family denied the opportunity to visit him. He remained in jail for 3 years, and commenced a hunger strike for 85 days that threatened his life.
\n\uf0d8 Omar Khaled Abu Rweis: the Olympic team goal keeper was abducted from his workplace at the Palestine Red Crescent by Israeli military forces who charged him with involvement in a terrorist cell and incarcerated him without further proof of such defaming charges
\n\uf0d8 Saadi Ibrahim Namir: Al-Amaari professional club player, arrested and denied a trial
\n\uf0d8 Basel Mahmud: coach of the Al-Isawiyah Club\u2019s Women\u2019s team was brutally attacked by the Israeli Army.
\n\uf0d8 Johar Nasser Aldeen Halabiyeh and Adam Halabiyeh: 19 year-old Abu Dis club player Johar and the 17 year-old Adam were attacked the night of 31 January 2014. Johar suffered from three bullet shots to the leg and foot and later brutally beaten by the IDF, whose dog nearly removed a chunk of his arm. The two were tried in the Military Court but released. The young men\u2019s burgeoning football careers were ruined that night.
\n\uf0d8 Saje Darwish: The 18 year-old footballer was killed by a sniper on his way to a match 10 March 2014<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
https:\/\/nonviolenceinternational.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/Combined-Exec.-Summary-and-Final-Report.docx Israel Hinders Football in Occupied Palestine: 2008-2014 By Nonviolence International and Palestine Football Association Author: Mariabruna Jennings Editors: Jonathan Kuttab, Susan Shalabi-Molano June 10, 2014 Table of Contents Executive Summary………………………………………………………………………………………………………..3 Infrastructure………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 6 Zoning Ordeals…………………………………………………………………………………………………… 6 Cases of Active Israeli Intervention………………………………………………………………………. 7 Restrictions of Movement………………………………………………………………………………………………..8 Pre-FIFA Mechanism……………………………………………………………………………………………8 Post-FIFA Mechanism………………………………………………………………………………………… 23 Hindering Shipments of Donated Sports […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[19],"class_list":["post-107289","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorised","tag-english"],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"2.12.2","language":"fr","enabled_languages":["gb","es","fr","pt","ru","no","ar"],"languages":{"gb":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"es":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false},"fr":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false},"pt":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false},"ru":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false},"no":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false},"ar":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false}}},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107289"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107289"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107289\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107289"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107289"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballagainstapartheid.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107289"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}