KUALA LUMPUR – The sports world is showing its solidarity with the people of Palestine amid their conflict with Israel.
Sports stars and fans from all over the world are showing support and using their massive platforms to highlight the ongoing atrocities in Palestine by Israel.
Yesterday, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) held its UFC 294 event at the Etihad Arena in the UAE capital of Abu Dhabi.
The main event featured a bout between current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev and Australian contender Alexander Volkanovski, who is also the featherweight champion.
Makhachev decisively defended his championship belt with a head-kick knockout of the Australian.
During the post-fight interview, the Dagestani champion took the opportunity to highlight the atrocities happening in Palestine.
🇷🇺🇵🇸 UFC Lightweight Champion, Islam Makhachev, shows his support for Palestine following his knockout victory over Alexander Volkanovski.
— Censored Men (@CensoredMen) October 21, 2023
“Palestine we stand with you.”#UFC294 | @MAKHACHEVMMA pic.twitter.com/1dHItzje9q
“I’m not celebrating my win because it is crazy what is happening around the world. Palestine, we stand with you, stop this (war).”
He expanded on his stance further in the press conference after the fight.
“Last month, during my entire training camp, I watched videos and learned about the situation… what is happening in Palestine.
“(What is happening in) Gaza… makes me very sad because the people in Palestine don’t have anything.
“Every day, they are being attacked, not to kill some terrorists… but they are killing kids and old people.
“This is crazy what happened in Palestine, and I just want to send a message to stand with the people we’re with,” he said.
During the Merseyside derby on Saturday, Liverpool fans held a banner with a message that read “For God’s sake, save Gaza”. Some fans even held up the Palestinian flag in support.
'For God's sake save Gaza'
— ilmfeed (@IlmFeed) October 21, 2023
Liverpool fans showed their support for Gaza at today's game at Anfield. pic.twitter.com/fjIjQ4p0ug
At the same time, La Liga had issued a ban on fans bringing and displaying Palestine’s flag in stadiums during games, but Osasuna fans were defiant of the order, with their supporters holding the flag during their game against Granada.
La Liga: Palestine flags are forbidden.
— Leyla Hamed (@leylahamed) October 20, 2023
Osasuna fans tonight: pic.twitter.com/d65RzQK7IP
However, some have faced repercussions for their support of Palestine.
French club Nice suspended Algerian international Youcef Atal last week over a social media post that he had shared.
It was reported that Atal shared a video featuring Palestinian preacher Mahmoud al-Hasanat, who asked God to “send Jewish people a dark day”.
The post was quickly deleted, and the 27-year-old apologised, saying he would “never support a message of hate”.
Earlier, the German football club Mainz suspended Dutch winger Anwar El Ghazi for a pro-Palestine social media post that allegedly included the statement: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
“El Ghazi took a position on the ongoing conflict in the Middle East that was deemed unacceptable by the club,” Mainz said in a statement.
The club added that they spoke with the player and, while they respect the variety of perspectives on the complex conflict in the Middle East, the club are distancing themselves from the content of the post because “it does not align with the values of the club.” – October 23, 2023