IDF says Palestinian soccer players it targeted served Hamas and Jihad terror groups

EXCLUSIVE: The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) has told Fox News Digital that shot players representing the Palestinian Authority it targeted with subject strikes were allegedly besides moving arsenic terrorists for Hamas and Jihadist groups.

"In caller weeks, mendacious claims person been circulated alleging that the IDF deliberately targeted guiltless Palestinian shot players passim the war," the IDF said successful a connection to Fox News Digital.

"In airy of these claims, the IDF is present revealing the identities of Palestinian shot players, referees, and coaches who were presented arsenic athletes and guiltless civilians, but who successful information served arsenic terrorists successful the subject wings of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad violent organizations successful the Gaza Strip, and were struck and eliminated by the IDF during the war.

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Fan displays a Palestine emblem amid the ongoing struggle betwixt Israel and Hamas astatine Israel-France shot lucifer connected Nov. 14, 2024. (REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes)

"Following an quality assessment, the IDF tin present disclose these terrorists’ organizational affiliations and operational roles. In galore cases, they were portrayed internationally lone arsenic players, with nary notation of their affiliation with violent organizations."

The IDF identified the players arsenic Mohammed Mohammed Hassan Barakat, Mahmoud Kamal Mohammad Ali Al-Rifi, Mohammed Mansour, Ahmed Mohammed Hassan Abu Al-Atta, Abdullah Riyadh Abdullah Khattab, Ali Mahmoud Ahmed Al-Kurd, Mohammad Emad Ata Hussouna, Tariq Ziad Hussein Al-Hour, Mohammed Ziad Hussein Al-Hour, Mahmoud Osama Al-Jazzar and Mohammad Nidal Mohammed Al-Hawajri.

According to the IDF, 3 of the players were allegedly progressive successful the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre, and others allegedly served successful different panic operations and enactment roles.

"The mendacious run portraying the IDF arsenic deliberately targeting members of the shot community, which was created arsenic portion of a broader effort promoted by assorted actors against the State of Israel, accompanies different mendacious narratives precocious passim the war," the IDF added.

"In those campaigns, Palestinian terrorists struck and eliminated by the IDF were presented arsenic journalists, humanitarian assistance workers, and different civilian professionals, portion their engagement successful violent enactment was deliberately concealed successful bid to beforehand mendacious claims that they had been targeted due to the fact that of their civilian professions."

Fox News Digital has reached retired to the Permanent Observer Mission of the State of Palestine to the United Nations for a effect to the IDF's claims.

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FIFA President Gianni Infantino shakes hands with Basim Sheikh Suliman (left), vice president of the Israeli Football Association, arsenic Jibril Rajoub (right), president of the Palestine Football Association, leaves the signifier astatine the 76th FIFA Congress successful Vancouver, Canada connected April 30, 2026. (Reuters/Jennifer Gauthier)

The authoritative Palestinian Football Association (PFA) reported earlier this period that astir 1,009 members of its diversion assemblage had been killed by IDF forces since the warfare began successful October 2023, according to Al Jazeera.

The IDF's exclusive disclosures travel against the backdrop of a fierce diplomatic and nationalist relations conflict connected the planetary sports stage.

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For implicit 2 years, the Palestinian Football Association, headed by Jibril Rajoub, has aggressively lobbied the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and FIFA to suspend Israel from planetary competition. Rajoub and the PFA person repeatedly cited the mounting decease toll of Palestinian athletes and the demolition of sports infrastructure successful Gaza arsenic grounds for an immediate, indefinite ban.

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The run reached a boiling constituent astatine caller FIFA Congresses. However, pursuing extended ineligible reviews, FIFA's Disciplinary Committee yet rejected the PFA's demands to suspend Israel entirely.

Instead, FIFA precocious opted to enforce a good connected the Israel Football Association (IFA) for unrelated disciplinary breaches and ordered the Israeli squad to show a "Football Unites the World – No to Discrimination" banner during upcoming matches.

However, FIFA did not fto the IFA locomotion distant wholly untouched. In a compromise measure, FIFA's Disciplinary Committee opted to penalize the Israeli relation for unrelated disciplinary breaches.

The IFA was fined 150,000 Swiss francs (approximately $190,700) for aggregate breaches of anti-discrimination obligations. Additionally, FIFA ordered the IFA to instrumentality a mandatory anti-discrimination prevention program and required the Israeli squad to prominently show "Football Unites the World – No to Discrimination" banners during upcoming matches.