[Opinion. What better way to celebrate Fifa—<deleted> Israel, <deleted> America! Those girls sure look like rock-throwing, terrorist suicide bombers to me, just waiting for their chance at martyrdom. Especially the Lutheran. Those are the ones ya really gotta watch--Hamas mind control. /s]

Israel detains two members of Palestinian women's football team

Fifa faces call to act after arrests of Rand Al Halawani, 20, and Natalie Abu Dayyeh, 21

The National: June 03, 2026

Israeli authorities have been condemned over the "systematic targeting" of Palestinian athletes after two members of the women's football team were detained.

The Palestine Football Association criticised the "unjust arrest" of Rand Al Halawani, 20, and Natalie Abu Dayyeh, 21. Both players have represented Palestine internationally.

Abu Dayyeh was one of four people arrested in an Israeli raid on student accommodation near Birzeit University in the occupied West Bank, local media reported. She is a media and journalism student at the university and plays football for Diyar Women.

Israeli authorities later detained Al Halawani after summoning her to the Talpiot police station in West Jerusalem. Her detention has since been extended until next Friday by an Israeli court order, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

"Rand and Natalie are young international players who have proudly represented Palestine at both youth and senior levels," the association said in a statement.

The association also called on Fifa, football's global governing body, and the international sporting community to take "concrete disciplinary action ... to address these ongoing violations".

In a statement, the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) denounced the prolonged detention, and said it was not an isolated incident; it is part of a well-documented pattern of systematic targeting of Palestinian athletes, which continues without accountability.

The Israeli military claimed that it suspected the four women of promoting terrorist activities and additional terrorist-related activities. [Umm, Natalie is a Lutheran terrorist. So they were probably just breathing.]

Birzeit University also condemned the arrests as part of Israel’s systematic policies targeting Palestinian education and students’ right to continue their academic journey.

From bombing stadiums and sports clubs to murdering well-known players, Israel’s genocide has practically destroyed football in Gaza.

Yarmouk Stadium, a former stadium in Gaza City. Palestinian athletes who once dreamed of making the Olympics trained there. The IDF occupied it in October 2023 and used it as an illegal interrogation camp.

The IDF then destroyed the stadium. It was then turned into a makeshift refugee camp.

As of September 2025, Israel had murdered nearly 800 Palestinian athletes, including 400 football players and 95 children. It had also destroyed 273 sports facilities and all five official stadiums, which used to host thousands of fans. It turned them into mass graves and displacement centres.

When we compare it to FIFA’s treatment of Russia, we have to ask, why the double standards?

In February 2022, just a few days after Russia invaded Ukraine, FIFA and the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) announced the suspension of Russian national teams and clubs from all international competitions.

Surely there must be more interesting things going on in Israel ?

Or a Jew must be misbehaving somewhere else in the World ?

Edited 38 minutes ago38 min by Nick Carter icp

5 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

Or Jew must be misbehaving somewhere else in the World ?

AN hounds are watching every move they make.

10 minutes ago, Nick Carter icp said:

Surely there must be more interesting things going on in Israel ?

Or Jew must be misbehaving somewhere else in the World ?

Perhaps you give a <deleted> about the Jews. I don't. For that matter any religion or nation-state EXCEPT when they commit crimes against humanity.

I'm getting to the point to think Israel is unsalvageable.

7 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

AN hounds are watching every move they make.

I've just seen three Israeli Jews walking round my local shopping centre , I will follow them around for a while to see if they steal anything, kill anyone or if they don't take their shoes off when entering a restaurant or whether they try to occupy a shop.

Maybe I should tell customer service to make a loud speaker announcement that three Israeli Jews are in the shopping mall and they might try to set fire to the shopping mall , so its best to evacuate now ?