NOVANEWS
Chechen Muslim football player Gabriel Kadiev made his debut last night for Beitar Jerusalem FC. However, he was met with a violent racist response from Beitar fans. The signings of Kadiev and his Chechen compatriot Zaur Sadayev, has been viciously opposed by fans on one single ground – they are Muslim. The violent protests included fans carrying out an arson attack on the team’s clubhouse.
The fans routinely wave huge flags of the outlawed racist Kach party and chant racist slogans toward Arab players. At the first game after the move, fans unfurled large banners with racist undertones, such as one reading ‘Beitar pure forever’.
After the signing of the Chechens, a confrontation erupted between the Beitar fans and team management. Fans turned abusive and began cursing and spitting at players and management. Violence in football has been an ongoing problem for Israel, and there has been a campaign to portray it as the work of a minority. However, these events reflect how deep the issue runs.
Tal Moyal, a 22-year-old fan who insists he is not a hardcore fan, said the current battle was a “war over the principles of the team.” “As far as most of the fans are concerned, a Muslim is a terrorist,” he said. “We are the capital of Israel. This team is a symbol. Muslims can’t wear our uniforms.”
This is not the first time that racism towards Muslims and Palestinians has reared its ugly head in Israel. On Monday 19 March 2012 a group of Beitar fans raided a shopping mall; stabbing one man and assaulting several others in a racially motivated mass attack on the shopping centre’s Palestinian staff and customers.
Despite the presence of such overt and vitriolic racism in Israel, UEFA has still decided to make Israel the host of the European U-21 Championship in June.
The fans routinely wave huge flags of the outlawed racist Kach party and chant racist slogans toward Arab players. At the first game after the move, fans unfurled large banners with racist undertones, such as one reading ‘Beitar pure forever’.
After the signing of the Chechens, a confrontation erupted between the Beitar fans and team management. Fans turned abusive and began cursing and spitting at players and management. Violence in football has been an ongoing problem for Israel, and there has been a campaign to portray it as the work of a minority. However, these events reflect how deep the issue runs.
Tal Moyal, a 22-year-old fan who insists he is not a hardcore fan, said the current battle was a “war over the principles of the team.” “As far as most of the fans are concerned, a Muslim is a terrorist,” he said. “We are the capital of Israel. This team is a symbol. Muslims can’t wear our uniforms.”
This is not the first time that racism towards Muslims and Palestinians has reared its ugly head in Israel. On Monday 19 March 2012 a group of Beitar fans raided a shopping mall; stabbing one man and assaulting several others in a racially motivated mass attack on the shopping centre’s Palestinian staff and customers.
Despite the presence of such overt and vitriolic racism in Israel, UEFA has still decided to make Israel the host of the European U-21 Championship in June.
