Hallgrimsson faces Israel questions as Ireland boycott calls grow

Amnesty warns allowing Israel to compete risks ‘rubber-stamping apartheid’

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REPUBLIC OF IRELAND manager Heimir Hallgrimsson and captain Dara O’Shea faced questions yesterday over their upcoming Nations League fixtures against Israel, as Amnesty International has warned allowing Israel to compete risks “rubber-stamping apartheid.”

The Israeli Football Association (IFA) has faced calls to be suspended from Fifa and Uefa over allowing teams from settlements in the West Bank to play in tournaments it organises, but a Fifa committee recommended in March that no action be taken.

Israel and the Republic of Ireland will meet twice for Nations League fixtures at neutral venues in the current international break amid calls for the Irish team to boycott the matches, and now Amnesty has called for football’s authorities to step in.

“It’s unconscionable that the Israel men’s football team will participate in the Uefa Nations League this autumn despite clear evidence that Israel’s football association continues to support illegal settlements,” Amnesty’s director for Europe, Steve Cockburn, said.

“Uefa and Fifa should have suspended the Israel Football Association long ago, for its refusal to exclude clubs based in illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

“Their continued participation in the Israeli leagues is in brazen violation of Fifa’s statutes and is contrary to international law.

“As the money keeps flowing from Fifa and Uefa to the Israel Football Association, they risk contributing to the sustainability of illegal settlements and of Israel’s unlawful occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and therefore Israel’s violations of Palestinians’ human rights.

“Sport should never be used as a public relations spectacle for states committing atrocities. The beautiful game should bring people together, not rubber-stamp apartheid.”

In March, Fifa’s governance, audit and compliance committee recommended no action be taken regarding the teams, stating “the final legal status of the West Bank remains an unresolved and highly complex matter under public international law.”

In 2024, the International Court of Justice declared Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem illegal under international law. Israel views the territory as disputed, rather than occupied.

Amnesty’s intervention follows criticism by the IFA of comments made by the Republic’s Icelandic coach Heimir Hallgrimsson.

On Monday, the IFA accused Hallgrimsson of ���ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity.”

He said last week of the matches against Israel: “We’re not playing with genocide, we’re playing against genocide. We’re playing against Israel, we’re not playing with Israel.”

Hallgrimsson responded in a press conference before tonight’s opening match against Kosovo: “The headlines that I said have taken the attention away from what is maybe most important, we are playing an important game against Kosovo.

“Maybe from a leadership point of view it was not clever from me, to take the attention [away] like this.

“Myself and the players need to be focused on the game. It’s a tricky time for us. We are grateful for the support we get.”

Republic captain Dara O’Shea was sat alongside Hallgrimsson at yesterday’s press conference and when asked if Ireland’s players had any protests planned for the Israel games, he said: “We spoke already, that we will come together on Friday and discuss it as a group.

“I don’t think we would be doing our job probably if we didn’t put our focus into the game [against Kosovo]. We will come together and discuss it openly on Friday.”