Latest news with #Shalabi
Days of Palestine
30-06-2025
- Sport
- Days of Palestine
Hundreds of Palestinian athletes killed by Israel since October 2023
DaysofPal – The Palestinian Football Association has revealed that 785 Palestinian athletes, coaches, and sports administrators have been killed in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank since the beginning of Israel's war on Gaza on October 7, 2023. Suzanne Shalabi, vice president of the association, told Anadolu Agency that 'the association has documented the deaths of 785 players, staff, and administrators from various sports during the Israeli war of extermination, the vast majority of them in the Gaza Strip, including 23 in the West Bank.' Among the victims, she noted, were 437 football players, including 15 from the West Bank. Shalabi explained that the numbers are based on player registration records and reports from the federation's Gaza branch, but the actual toll may be higher. 'The figures announced are not final because people are missing under the rubble, and it is difficult to reach all the affected areas due to Israeli bombing and the blockade imposed on the Strip,' she said. The toll on Palestinian sports infrastructure has also been devastating. 'The Israeli aggression has led to the complete or partial destruction of 288 sports facilities, including 21 in the occupied West Bank, including stadiums, sports halls, and club facilities,' Shalabi reported. She called for immediate action to 'end Israel's deliberate targeting of Palestinian sports and provide protection for athletes and facilities in the West Bank and Gaza.' About 190,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed or injured in Israel's genocide in Gaza since the war began, and more than 11,000 are still unaccounted for, according to Palestinian sources. Entire neighborhoods have been leveled, and hundreds of thousands have been forcibly displaced. A man-made famine has already claimed the lives of dozens of children. In tandem with the Gaza assault, Israeli forces and settlers have intensified their attacks in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. According to Palestinian data, at least 986 Palestinians have been killed and around 7,000 wounded in the West Bank since October. Shortlink for this post:
Middle East Eye
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Middle East Eye
Nearly 800 Palestinian athletes killed by Israeli forces, says football body
The Israeli military has killed at least 785 Palestinian athletes and sports officials since its war on Gaza began in October 2023, the Palestinian Football Association has said. Susan Shalabi, the association's deputy head, told Turkey's Anadolu Agency that the dead include footballers and staff from multiple disciplines, with most of the victims killed in Gaza. At least 23 were killed in the occupied West Bank. Among the dead were 437 football players, Shalabi said, including 15 from the West Bank. The association is compiling the figures using its registration records and data from its Gaza branch, she added. But the true toll could be higher. 'There are still people missing under the rubble,' Shalabi said, stressing that search efforts are hampered by limited access to areas devastated by Israeli bombardment.
Hamilton Spectator
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
FIFA gives more time for investigations into Israeli soccer asked for by Palestinian officials
ASUNCION, Paraguay (AP) — Palestinian officials were left frustrated Thursday after FIFA gave no clear timeline to report on two investigations into Israeli soccer opened last year. FIFA asked its disciplinary body last October to study allegations of discrimination by the Israeli soccer federation, and its governance panel to advise if teams from Israeli settlements in the West Bank playing in national competitions breached the governing body's statues. The Palestinian soccer federation's renewed claims to FIFA last year are part of a 15-year campaign seeking action against settlement clubs. 'Let's not wait another year. We need to act now,' Palestinian soccer official Susan Shalabi, a member of the Asian Football Confederation's executive committee, urged FIFA leaders. 'All we are asking for is a clear update on the status of the matter and an exact date in which the investigation will be concluded,' she said. Shalabi asked FIFA to set a one-month deadline for the governance panel to report back to the ruling council chaired by FIFA president Gianni Infantino. The Palestinians' issues in soccer are 'visible, undeniable but sadly ignored,' she said, getting warm applause after a nine-minute speech. FIFA responded after no member federation at the Congress, including Israel, took up an invitation to speak. FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafström said the two investigations need more time and new members elected Thursday had to be informed on the issues. 'The committees are working diligently to conclude what is clearly a highly complex topic,' he said. ___ AP soccer:
Winnipeg Free Press
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
FIFA gives more time for investigations into Israeli soccer asked for by Palestinian officials
ASUNCION, Paraguay (AP) — Palestinian officials were left frustrated Thursday after FIFA gave no clear timeline to report on two investigations into Israeli soccer opened last year. FIFA asked its disciplinary body last October to study allegations of discrimination by the Israeli soccer federation, and its governance panel to advise if teams from Israeli settlements in the West Bank playing in national competitions breached the governing body's statues. The Palestinian soccer federation's renewed claims to FIFA last year are part of a 15-year campaign seeking action against settlement clubs. 'Let's not wait another year. We need to act now,' Palestinian soccer official Susan Shalabi, a member of the Asian Football Confederation's executive committee, urged FIFA leaders. 'All we are asking for is a clear update on the status of the matter and an exact date in which the investigation will be concluded,' she said. Shalabi asked FIFA to set a one-month deadline for the governance panel to report back to the ruling council chaired by FIFA president Gianni Infantino. The Palestinians' issues in soccer are 'visible, undeniable but sadly ignored,' she said, getting warm applause after a nine-minute speech. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. FIFA responded after no member federation at the Congress, including Israel, took up an invitation to speak. FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafström said the two investigations need more time and new members elected Thursday had to be informed on the issues. 'The committees are working diligently to conclude what is clearly a highly complex topic,' he said. ___ AP soccer:
Jordan Times
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Jordan Times
West Bank campus a dystopian shelter for Palestinians uprooted again
Palestinians check the rubble of buildings which were demolished by Israeli amy excavators in Nilin north west of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, on April 21, 2025 (AFP photo) JENIN, PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES — On deserted university grounds in the occupied West Bank, Palestinian children run outside nearly empty buildings, their playground after being driven from their homes by a major Israeli "counter-terrorism" operation. Between a stadium and flower fields where goats now graze, the children play to escape boredom. They have no school to go to since the Israeli military ordered residents to leave the Jenin refugee camp more than two months ago. Mohammed Shalabi, a 53-year-old father who is among several hundred Palestinians sheltering at the university campus in Jenin city, recalled the day he heard that special Israeli forces were inside the camp. "Everyone knows that when the army enters, it destroys the infrastructure, even the cars," said the municipal worker. Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been displaced from the northern West Bank since Israel launched the offensive dubbed "Iron Wall" on January 21 in the area. Shalabi first left Jenin camp for nearby villages before authorities offered accommodation at the now vacant premises of the Arab American University, one of the leading institutions in the West Bank. Shalabi said he has avoided "discussing all of this" with his 80-year-old father to protect his fragile health. "But he understands, and sometimes he cries, because he lived through the Nakba, and now this..." said Shalabi, referring to the mass displacement of Palestinians in the war that accompanied Israel's creation in 1948. - No return - Now forced to leave their homes in the Jenin refugee camp, residents fear a repeat of the collective trauma they inherited. The United Nations agency supporting Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, provides aid but recent Israeli legislation barring coordination with Israeli military authorities has complicated its work. The cash-strapped Palestinian Authority, which has partial administrative control in the West Bank, lacks the funds to help. Many international organisations are already focusing much of their efforts in the Gaza Strip, a separate Palestinian territory where the Israel-Hamas war since October 2023 has created a dire humanitarian crisis. "No one is interested in what's happening here," said a social worker who often visits the displacement shelter at the university to hand out blankets, food or grocery money. Public services like rubbish collection are rare or virtually non-existent. Many displaced residents have asked for a temporary school to be set up for the children but to no avail. Most shops are closed, and the nearest supermarket is a 20-minute walk away. All the while, Israeli army bulldozers operate in the Jenin camp, leaving behind a trail of destruction. "They told us we no longer have a home, and that we won't be returning to the camp," said displaced resident Umm Majd. Some camp residents who attempted to go back say they were turned away. In early March, an UNRWA official spoke of growing concerns that "the reality being created on the ground aligns with the vision of annexation of the West Bank."
