Ireland’s Prime Minister Martin criticized the Israel Football Federation’s remarks about Ireland national team coach Hallgrímsson while in New York for the United Nations General Assembly.
Before the Nations League match scheduled between Israel and Ireland on September 27, the Israel Football Federation described the coach as an “idiot, ignorant and hypocritical” after Hallgrímsson said they would play against Israel.
Martin said the federation’s remarks were unacceptable and should be retracted. Referring to United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres’s comments about the wave of destruction and massacres targeting Palestinians in Gaza, Martin said Hallgrímsson had expressed a similar view.
Ireland’s prime minister said Israel could not continue denying developments that the world had seen and understood. He said journalists and world leaders should be allowed to enter Gaza so they could see the destruction there.
Martin said nearly 2 million people in Gaza were trapped in one-third of the territory and that the humanitarian situation had reached catastrophic levels.
Amnesty International calls on UEFA and FIFA
Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International’s Europe regional director, said UEFA was giving Israel international space while the occupation and genocide continued in Gaza and the West Bank.
The organization said there was evidence of the Israel Football Federation’s links to illegal Israeli settlements established in the occupied Palestinian territories, describing the federation’s participation in international competitions as unacceptable.
Cockburn argued that UEFA and FIFA should remove Israel from the system because of Israeli football clubs located in Palestinian territories. He drew attention to the risk that money given to Israeli clubs could help sustain the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories.
Cockburn said the failure of political leaders and sports organizations to respond to Israel strengthened the perception of impunity, adding that fans were demanding accountability, justice and fair play.
The first match between the Israel and Ireland national teams is expected to be played in Hungary on September 27.
