Football players voice solidarity with Palestine as Israel continues Gaza bombardment

ANKARA (AA) — Football players across the world have expressed solidarity with Palestine as Israel continues to bombard the impoverished and besieged Gaza Strip.

Galatasaray’s Moroccan winger Hakim Ziyech, his compatriot at Bayern Munich Noussair Mazraoui, former Real Madrid star and 2022 men’s Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema, Arsenal’s Egyptian midfielder Mohamed Elneny and Real Betis’ French player Nabil Fekir voiced their support for Palestinians on social media.

“From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” Ziyech, who moved to Galatasaray this summer, said on Instagram.

Mazraoui, a Bayern Munich defender and Ziyech’s teammate at Morocco, also expressed support for Palestine in an Instagram video.

The Moroccan right-back, who previously played for Ajax Amsterdam, was criticized by a German politician on Sunday.

Johannes Steiniger, a Christian Democratic Union (CDU) politician, called Bayern Munich and Germany to send him off.

Steiniger said on X that Bayern Munich, called “the Jewish Club” by Nazis for its roots, should “throw out” Mazraoui, and Germany should use all options to “expel” him from the country.

“All our prayers for the inhabitants of Gaza who are once again victims of these unjust bombings which spare no women or children,” Al-Ittihad’s French forward Benzema said on X.

Last week Arsenal’s Elneny and Real Betis’ Fekir joined these players to support Palestine.

Elneny, a former Besiktas and Basel midfielder, changed his Instagram profile picture to a Palestinian flag.

On X, Real Betis attacking midfielder Fekir, who won the 2018 FIFA World Cup with France, called for supporting Palestinian people and wished for peace and justice, adding that Palestinians have been “suffering from apartheid for too long”

Meanwhile Liverpool’s Egyptian star Mohamed Salah made a donation to the Palestinian people, Rami Al-Nazer, the Egyptian Red Crescent CEO, told a local TV channel on the phone.

Upon Salah’s request, Al-Nazer did not disclose the details about the amount of the player’s donation.

Ten days into the conflict with Palestinian group Hamas, Israeli bombardment and blockade of the Gaza Strip has continued, with over 1 million people — almost half the population of Gaza — having been displaced.

Gaza is experiencing a dire humanitarian crisis with no electricity, and water, food, fuel, and medical supplies running out. Civilians are fleeing southward following an Israeli warning to evacuate northern areas.

The number of Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza has soared to 2,750, including 750 children.