Turkish Football Federation President Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu has written to FIFA, UEFA and national soccer association chiefs urging them to impose a ban on Israel from participating in sporting competition, local media reports.
The request comes as European soccer’s governing body UEFA appears poised for an emergency vote next week on suspending Israel from its tournaments, with national federations coming under mounting political pressure following calls for action.
“Despite positioning themselves as defenders of civic values and peace, the sporting world and football institutions have remained silent for far too long,” Haciosmanoglu writes in the letter, according to the Anadolu Agency.
“Guided by these values, we feel compelled to raise our deep concern regarding the unlawful [and more importantly, completely inhumane and unacceptable] situation being carried out by the State of Israel in Gaza and its surrounding areas.”
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