Ireland abruptly ends press conference as Israeli reporters grill coach about flydubai attack, alleged monkey taunts

The Republic of Ireland’s press conference on the eve of their second Nations League soccer match against Israel in Serbia is cut short as head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson fields questions from Israeli journalists.

Ireland beat Israel 3-0 in Hungary in their first match on Tuesday following a turbulent build-up in which the Irish players voted to fulfill the fixture despite unease among the team over the war in Gaza, which was started by the Hamas terror group’s October 7, 2023, invasion of southern Israel.

During that match the Irish players wore armbands and pointedly lowered their heads while the Israeli national anthem played. There were no handshakes between the captains before kick-off.

The return leg takes place on Sunday in Backa Topola after the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) refused to host the match at home for security reasons.

One journalist asks Hallgrimsson for his thoughts about the incident on Wednesday when an Indian pilot was attacked by the co-pilot during a flydubai flight from the UAE to Israel, which Emirati judicial authorities and Israeli officials have described as a “terrorist act.”

“What do you say about the people that you support? Their ideology is based on murder,” the journalist asks.

“Just this week, one of them tried to kill 170 Israeli passengers, including 27 innocent children and thousands of others.”

An Irish team press officer intervened, saying: “We are not doing any questions like this today. We are doing football questions.”

Another journalist then addresses the Ireland manager, saying: “Your players call our players monkeys during the match…,” only to be immediately interrupted by an FAI official repeatedly insisting “that is completely untrue,” while the microphone is taken away from the reporter.

The Irish delegation then brings the press conference to an abrupt end.