Citing safety concerns, police nix Sakhnin-Jerusalem soccer match

Amid Jewish-Arab tensions, police on Thursday canceled a soccer game between long-standing rivals Bnei Sakhnin and Beitar Jerusalem, citing public safety concerns.

Police informed the Bnei Sakhnin club that it would not be permitted to host the Sunday night match at its home stadium in the Arab town of Sakhnin due to the lack of emergency exits — having demanded the paving of a new, separate access route — and said the game must be held at an alternative venue.

Shortly after, an administrative order was issued to close the area around the stadium.

Following the decision, Bnei Sakhnin’s management said that the team would not play the emotionally charged game if it did not take place in its home stadium, Doha.

Bnei Sakhnin is based in the Israeli Arab town of Sakhnin, and most of its players and fans are Israeli Arabs. The club has a traditional rivalry with Beitar Jerusalem, some of whose right-wing Jewish supporters are known for anti-Arab chanting during matches.

Recent matches between the rival teams have required up to 600 police officers, private security guards and undercover detectives, who have attempted to root out displays of hostility and calls of racist incitement between fans.

Sakhnin-Beitar matches in recent years have resulted in violent confrontations, riots and multiple arrests.

The game would have come at an especially sensitive time, as tensions between Jews and Arabs have roiled Jerusalem and northern Israel, including Sakhnin, in recent weeks.

However, in its decision to cancel the game, police specifically cited the lack of paved roads around the stadium as a danger to the public.

Bnei Sakhnin’s management said it complied with all of the requirements ahead of Sunday’s game, including providing sufficient security and buses for fan transportation.

“We are not a construction company, we do not have the ability to pave an asphalt road complete with street lights,” team chairman Mohammad Abu Younis told Ynet on Thursday.

“If that is the reason for closing Doha, it seems that police didn’t want the game to be held there regardless,” he said.

Northern Israel was rocked by several days of clashes between Arab youths and police earlier this month, after an Arab man was shot dead by police in Nazareth, near Sakhnin.

Bnei Sakhnin is the Premier League’s only Arab-Israeli club and its state-of-the-art football stadium and sports complex was built with millions of dollars in donations from Qatar in 2005.

Hours after the cancellation announcement was made, police agreed to reexamine the decision Friday.