GAZA CITY: Due to Israeli restrictions and the separation between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, Palestinian athletes do not enjoy regular sports competitions.
Last week, Israel blocked the Rafah football team from traveling to the West Bank from the Gaza Strip, preventing the final match of the Palestine Cup against the Balata Youth Center team. The match was scheduled a week ago at Nablus Stadium. They were forced to postpone it indefinitely.
A board member of the Rafah Club, Hudhayfah Lafi, said they were surprised to discover that Israeli authorities had only granted four permits to their 35-strong team to pass through the Erez crossing.
On Aug. 30, the Israeli authorities prevented three members of the Balata Youth Center, including their goalkeeper and coach, from passing through Erez to meet the Rafah team in the final match of the Palestine Cup.
“These complicated Israeli measures are aimed at obstructing the development of Palestinian sport, especially football, which has improved so much over the year,” Lafi said.
The Palestinian Football Federation organizes separate contests in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank due to Israeli restrictions. For four years, it has organized the Palestine Cup to determine the federation’s champions through two-legged matches.
The Palestinian Football Federation was established in 1928, and joined FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation in 1998. Since then, Palestinian teams have been participating in international and continental competitions.
But due to Israeli restrictions and the positions of Arab and Islamic countries that do not have relations with Israel, the Palestinian national team has been banned from playing their home games in Palestinian stadiums for many years and is forced to host them in nearby Arab countries.
The first official international game on Palestinian territory was recorded by FIFA in October 2008, where Palestine faced Jordan at the Stadium of Martyr Faisal Husseini in Jerusalem, which ended in a draw.
Ibrahim Abu Saleem, vice president of the Palestinian Football Federation, said that Palestinian teams are forced to establish training camps outside Palestine because of Israel’s refusal to grant Gaza Strip players permits to cross into the West Bank.
Israeli authorities have recently disrupted training camps by preventing trainers from the International Federation of Football from entering the Gaza Strip.
Abu Saleem said that Israel is fighting Palestinian youth by blocking sport, but it will not succeed in its efforts to limit its growth. He said that sport in Palestine will remain “one of the headlines of the national struggle.”
He added that Palestinian sport carries “a message of love and peace to the world,” which requires FIFA and the international community to confront Israeli violations against athletes and sports in Palestine.
The sports page editor of the Palestinian daily Al-Ayyam, Ashraf Matar, said that although much attention is dedicated to football, the obstacles imposed by Israel include many other sports, preventing the passage of coaches to hold courses in the Gaza Strip.
“Israel has banned members of the Olympic Committee and the delegation of the Scout and Girl Guides Association in Gaza from going to Jordan to participate in a sports event.
“Sports teams in Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Jerusalem are participating in local Israeli competitions and European competitions, and organizing games on playgrounds in these settlements,” Mattar added. “Israel prevents Palestinian sports teams from freely moving between Gaza and the West Bank.”
The president of the Palestinian Football Federation, Jibril Rajoub, submitted a draft resolution to the FIFA Congress in May 2015 to vote on the suspension of Israel’s membership until it complies with international laws and stops targeting Palestinian athletes. Rajoub later withdrew this resolution following advice from international federations. FIFA committed to investigating the Israeli violations through its Commission of Inquiry.
Abu Saleem expressed his indignation at FIFA’s “vague position,” which did not take the recommendations of its own fact-finding committee.
Israeli restrictions on Gaza and West Bank stifling Palestinian football
Israeli restrictions on Gaza and West Bank stifling Palestinian football
- Israeli authorities have recently disrupted training camps by preventing trainers from the International Federation of Football from entering the Gaza Strip
- Last week, Israel blocked the Rafah football team from traveling to the West Bank from the Gaza Strip
Powerboat pilots primed for E1 Jeddah GP 2026
- Team Monaco and Sierra Racing Club joined the championship for the first time, adding further depth to the grid
- Event is organized by the Saudi Water Sports and Diving Federation in collaboration with the Union Internationale Motonautique (UIM)
JEDDAH: Pilots of the teams participating in the opening round of the third season of the E1 Series, the world’s first all-electric raceboat championship on the Red Sea in Jeddah from January 23 – 24, have expressed their readiness for the event.
The Jeddah GP 2026 will feature a record of 10 teams racing the cutting-edge E1 RaceBirds, underlining the rapid growth of the championship and its ambitions as a global competition spanning four continents.
Team Monaco and Sierra Racing Club joined the championship for the first time, adding further depth to the grid with a mix of experienced and emerging pilots.
The event is organized by the Saudi Water Sports and Diving Federation in collaboration with the Union Internationale Motonautique (UIM), under the supervision of the Ministry of Sport and is presented by the Public Investment Fund (PIF).
Ahead of the event, a press conference was held on Wednesday at the media center, appearing at the event was John Williams, Managing Director at E1 who shared the excitement and vision for the opening season for the UIM E1 World Championship and expressed his enthusiasm for the Jeddah round.
He told the media that E1 World Championship 2026 is looking ahead for another thrilling and exciting season, “We are delighted to restart racing here on the beautiful Red Sea in Jeddah as the E1 Jeddah GP once again brings together electric racing, elite teams and world-class pilots as the championship enters a new season.”
“We always love to come back to this beautiful city of Jeddah and hope we can bring excitement to our fans here in this part of the world and we are very excited for a great race.
He added that the vision for E1 has always been to inspire change through competition.
“With every season, E1 is not only growing as a sport but showing what’s possible when sport drives sustainability forward,” he said.
Williams also announced that the E1 race in partnership with Saudi Arabia introducing new initiatives as part of its social program, he said: “During this weekend we aim to inspire Saudi students aged 8 to 18 to explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics, as well as sustainability, through the lens of electric racing.”
Also in attendance at the press conference were Rusty Wyatt of AlUla team, Tom Chiappe of team Rafael Nadal, Maxime Nocher of team Monaco, and Ieva Millere of team Drogba.
French professional pilot for Team Rafa, Tom Chiappe indicated that the team is gearing up for a new exciting season, “First of all, glad to come back to Jeddah and looking forward to competing and winning first place after we finished last season in second. I am really glad to start the season here in Jeddah and hope the E1 fans in Jeddah enjoy the race,” he said.
Canadian racer, Rusty Wyatt of team AlUla expressed his excitement to show what the team can achieve in front of so much local support and to make AlUla proud.
“It really feels like a home GP in Jeddah.
Following last year’s E1 Grand Prix in Jeddah, Wyatt was fortunate enough to spend a week in AlUla which he said was truly unforgettable.
Speaking about this season, He continued: “We have gone through a lot of work to get better and this year we have taking all the data and all that knowledge to become much better team. Our confidence level is really high and we are going to give it all best of us to gain pole position.”
This year Ieva Millere is piloting the innovative RaceBird for Drogba team after representing the Brazil team last year.
Millere said: “I am so excited to be here in Jeddah for the third year in a row but this time I am with the Drogba team. We are really hoping to bring success for the team.”
Meanwhile, the pilot of team Monaco, French Maxime Nocher confirmed 2026 would serve as a learning season.
“It is the debut season for team Monaco and the goal is to gain experience and build something solid for the next season in 2027. However, we are ready to make an impact for our season,” he said.
