FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Despite being faced with demands to suspend these clubs or the IFA, the leadership of UEFA and FIFA have taken no action...
On February 16, a group of Palestinian footballers, clubs and advocacy groups referred the heads of FIFA and UEFA to the International Criminal Court (ICC). The 120-page dossier accuses Gianni Infantino and Aleksander Ceferin of "aiding and abetting war crimes, namely the transfer of the civilian population to the occupied territories, and crimes against humanity, namely apartheid."
This historic case marks the first time that sports leaders have been charged with these crimes and sends a warning to the presidents of all other corporate entities in and beyond athletics. It offers a perfect opportunity to challenge the impunity of Israeli apartheid, occupation, and genocide.
Football is the most popular form of cultural expression in the world, with an estimated five billion fans across the planet. The stakes of this indictment are therefore high in terms of the spectacle of accountability and legal precedent.
During its campaign in Gaza, of genocide in general and "killing athletes" in particular, Israel has killed 1,007 Palestinian athletes and destroyed 184 sports facilities, while damaging 81 others.
Although this “athletic murder” cannot be directly attributed to the Israel Football Association (IFA), its activities related to clubs from illegal Israeli settlements located in the occupied Palestinian territory and their participation in domestic and international tournaments can be seen as inciting Israeli crimes of occupation and apartheid.
Despite facing calls for the suspension of these clubs or the IFA, the leadership of UEFA and FIFA have taken no action. In a recent interview, FIFA chief Infantino said he opposed banning Israeli teams from global football, calling it "a waste". He went on to add that he was in favour of including in FIFA's statutes that no country should ever be banned from "playing football because of the actions of their political leaders".
Ironic, when you consider that he is the very person who oversaw Russia's suspension from FIFA in 2022 and the banning of Crimean clubs from playing in the Russian league, affiliated with UEFA, following Russia's invasion of the Ukrainian peninsula in 2014. The lawsuit is being brought against Infantino and Ceferin because private organizations cannot be defendants before the ICC, but individuals responsible for their policies can be.
The focus of the complaint is the fact that the IFA has been allowed to materially support, recognize and include in domestic and international competitions clubs that are located on stolen land in the occupied West Bank settlements.
Article 64(2) of the FIFA Statutes prohibits member associations and their clubs from playing on the territory of another member association without the latter's consent. The lawsuit alleges that by allowing the IFA to oversee clubs operating on stolen land, Infantino and Ceferin are responsible for normalizing illegal Israeli settlements, in direct violation of a 2024 ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and a resolution by the United Nations General Assembly, which found the settlements "illegal" and called on Israel to "immediately cease all new settlement activities and evacuate all settlers from the Occupied Palestinian Territory."
The existence of sanctioned Israeli clubs in West Bank settlements, the request argues, contributes to the transfer of the civilian population to the occupied territory, contrary to Article 8(2)(b)(viii) of the Rome Statute, by normalizing colonization.
Likewise, because Israeli clubs in the occupied territory prohibit Palestinians from watching matches or playing for or managing these teams, the continued sanctioning of these organizations falls under the definition of aiding and abetting apartheid (a crime against humanity under Article 7(1)(j) of the Rome Statute).
By continuing to allow these clubs and the IFA to join global and European sport, the lawsuit alleges that Infantino and Čeferin acted with full knowledge that they were participating in a violation of international law, based on the fact that they deliberately ignored numerous reports and letters advising them to intervene.
Now that the complaint has been formally filed, the ICC Prosecutor’s Office will conduct a preliminary examination to confirm that the elements of jurisdiction, admissibility and the interests of justice have been met. They will then have the option of either declining to open an investigation or continuing with the investigation of the legal issues raised in the complaint.
If an investigation were to be launched, evidence would be gathered and arrest warrants or subpoenas could ultimately be issued. If this were to happen, it would set an important precedent and give momentum to the campaign for justice for Palestine. It is notable that, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has managed to evade an ICJ arrest warrant by hiding from states party to the Rome Statute, it would be impossible for Infantino and Ceferin to do so while still fulfilling their roles, assuming it is implemented.
Football is, without a doubt, one of the most popular sports on the planet. When such a cultural giant merges with business, what emerges is an industry like no other. FIFA and UEFA are global regulatory monopolies, meaning their rules and regulations operate in the same way that a country’s legislation operates over its population. They also preside over a vast and lucrative industry worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
Given the amount of eyeballs and money at stake, the impact of a ban on participation is huge, as Russia understands all too well after being suspended. This is undoubtedly precisely why the presidents of these organizations have refused to act against Israel under the guise of “political neutrality.”
After all, sport is and always has been political. The veneer of "political neutrality" hides the reality that politics is at the heart of the game for FIFA and UEFA./ Adapted from "Pamphlet" by " Al Jazeera "
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